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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | January 31, 2019 02:01 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Aaron Bernstine |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Property Tax Exemption for Non-Profit Fraternal & Agricultural Organizations |
| In the near future, I will be introducing legislation to protect the continued contributions made by non-profit fraternal and agricultural organizations in Pennsylvania. Specifically, this legislation amends the Institutions of Purely Public Charity Act to exempt certain fraternal and agricultural non-profit or benevolent organizations from property taxes. These groups would include those in existence in Pennsylvania for more than one-hundred years. For over a century, they have promoted the public good by performing countless acts of service aiding citizens and families in their communities using a Hall or Lodge as their base of operations. These fraternal and agricultural organizations face financial hardship caused by financial requirements imposed by local real estate taxes. This has resulted in several cases where these buildings have simply closed and their non-profit fraternal and agricultural owners have withered away because of the loss of this anchor for the work that they do in serving others. This urgency is particularly acute in rural parts of the Commonwealth because in some areas, these fraternal and agricultural organizations have traditionally provided non-profit safety nets for meeting the social well-being needs of those communities. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation designed to protect this outstanding legacy of community service by those fraternal and agricultural organizations which have helped Pennsylvanians for over a century. |