The Juniata Valley School Board has raised the school property tax over 10% from 57 mills in 2005 to 62.8 mills in 2007. The school board has also voted to go forward with a $22,000,000 renovation project in the high school so we can expect more school property tax increases in the future. The Huntingdon County commissioners have raised the county property tax by 14% from 21 mills to 24 mills. Our school district has the fewest owner-occupied households in the county and very little commercial property so the typical homeowner has to pay high school taxes.
Over the past year I have met with people at the senior center who are struggling with a number of financial issues that are pulling at their limited fixed incomes of social security and maybe a small retirement. Some have experienced the Medicare prescription drug plan’s “Doughnut Hole” where their monthly prescription drug costs unexpectedly go up hundreds of dollars at the end of the calendar year. Some have experienced dramatically increased oil costs to heat their homes and/or dramatically increased gasoline costs that affect their ability to go to the grocery store to purchase items that have also become more expensive. These facts continue to paint a dark picture for low income property taxpayers Unlike someone who has a job with a salary coming in, there is no alternative other than cutting back on what they are currently spending money on to make ends meet, if that is at all possible. The property tax is terribly unfair to senior citizens on a fixed income as there is no relationship between an increasing tax bill and their ability to pay. You may have noticed in the newspaper that another senior citizen has lost his home because of delinquent property taxes. Shameful!
A number of the people I have met with at the senior center have qualified for the new Rent/Rebate program that can refund from $250 to $650 of 2006 property taxes paid based on their income. So far, the average refund for the people I’ve helped at the Juniata Valley Senior Center is $373. This is helpful but it falls short of real tax relief when you consider that the senior citizens in the Juniata Valley School District along with the other approved homesteads currently pay, on average, $1,151 in school and county property taxes. Ken Tucker, the tax assessor, has reported that there are 1,323 approved homesteads who have a total assessed value of $17,540,500. This translates into an average assessed value of $13,258 which when multiplied by the millage calculates to: JV School Tax @ 62.8 mills = $833 + County Tax @ 24 mills = $318. ergo, Total = $1,151.
There is one ray of hope in this dark picture and that is the upcoming May 15 Primary Election. There will be a referendum question that asks if you are in favor of a tax shift that can ease some of the burden from lower income property taxpayers to earned income taxpayers for those people who have approved Homestead Exclusions. I strongly urge you to get out and vote “YES” to this question. Talk to your family members and neighbors and get them to vote “YES” to help the lower income property taxes. If we can get this referendum to pass, the Juniata Valley school property tax bills that will be mailed out in July 2007 will be reduced by $259 for every approved homestead and farmstead.
Remember that social security, pensions, investment income will not be taxed by this new tax.
May 15, 2007 Primary Ballot Question
Do you favor the Juniata Valley school district imposing an additional .7% earned income tax? The revenue generated from the tax will be used to reduce taxes on qualified owner occupied residential properties and on qualified farm buildings by approximately $259 the first year and potentially $352 in subsequent years.
Vote “YES”