|
|
|
The Board will make the decision based on the information provided to them through workshop attendance and at these public presentations. They will listen to the questions asked and comments made by attendees. Also, Act 72 will be placed on every agenda of every Board meeting between now and May 30, 2005. Therefore, the public will be able to present their concerns and comments to the Board at public meetings.
If the anticipated funding is not available, the amount of the tax reduction available to residents will decrease. You will need to review your assessment exemption to determine the level of property tax reduction.
It is the level that a district levies taxes. One mill is the equivalent of approximately $25.00. The millage rate in 2004-05 in PVSD was 113.65 mills. The value of a mill varies from district to district, with a mill in Pleasant Valley worth approximately $273,000 (collected) in 2004-05. This the lowest value of any school district in IU 20.
Because that is the way that Act 72 is written. The remainder is dedicated to other areas (casino operations, economic development, host municipality, etc).
The Board wants to hear from residents before they decide.
Parts of the profits from gambling are dedicated to these programs and makes up the other 66% of the gaming revenue designated to various projects.
Actually, Act 71 which is currently being challenged authorizes using gaming profits to reduce property taxes. Act 72 is not a school revenue law. It is about state gaming allocations to property tax reduction. 11 Is the New York income tax reciprocal? No. 12. Can a district opt out after a period? Once you are in you may not opt out for at least 4 years and then only via a voter referendum. 13. Dr. Pullo, are you for or against Act 72? Tax relief is desperately needed. I’m not sure that Act 72 is the answer. I would appreciate an extension of time to make the decision. It isn’t a good practice for our Board to commit to something with many questions unanswered. Specifically, we cannot be sure of the amount of profits from gambling, so there is no way to be sure of the amount of tax reduction. To reach the promised $825 of tax relief, there will have to be 1 billion dollars or more in gaming profits. 14. If we opt out what would happened to the money that would have been available to the district? There is a difference of opinion between legislators about this. Some say that the extra money will be shared among districts that “opt in.” Others say that the extra money will not be shared among districts that opt in. 15. If the legislators look at what you showed us, how can they ever think the small decreases and they aren’t all decreases could possibly benefit us? To me it’s a nightmare along with the new gaming law. I hope the courts rescind the new gaming law. I personally would like to see Mario Scavello’s sales tax proposal implemented. 16. Is this correct? On 1 billion dollars gaming per year, that in Pleasant Valley each property owner would receive an $825 rebate each year minus 1/10 of one percent increase on earned income? Yes. The only way that the earned income tax rate can be increased above the 1/10 of one per cent is via voter referendum. 17. If I do not gamble, will I still qualify for property tax reduction or will I be required to gamble. You do not have to gamble to qualify. 18. Act 72 was passed to relieve property tax. Will other programs also be funded with gambling monies? If so, how would that affect funding for schools? 34% of the profits are dedicated for property tax relief. The other 66% will be used for other purposes. Act 72 provides no money for funding school programs. 19. What impact will Act 72 have on future construction for our district? Although future construction would be permitted, most building projects will be approved by the voters. 20. If earned income tax is increased will pension wages then become taxable? No. 21. Will the citizens of PVSD ever vote on a budget? It all depends. It is a provision of Act 72, but if a district budget falls below the index, no referendum is mandated. Also, if the district qualifies for one or more of the exceptions, a referendum will not occur. 22. What additional expenses would PVSD incur if we opt into Act 72? We have already incurred mailing costs for the Homestead Exception applications, although there is proposed legislation to reimburse districts for same. With the advent of “referendum” the district may need to hire a public relations director to continually provide our residents with information about our district, so that they make informed decisions. Also, the current tax collection system would need to be revised, incurring additional costs. Finally, there will be legal costs incurred to file exceptions to referendums with the Court of Common Pleas. 23. As stated in the Pocono Record, will citizens receive the $812 in property tax relief? If $1 billion in profits is achieved, the projected tax relief is approximately $815. 24. What does the school Board want to do right now? The majority of Board members are undecided and will most likely not make a decision until the May 26, 2005 Board meeting. 25. Was the school Board seeking an extension beyond the May 30, 2005 deadline? Yes. 26. The problem with shifting funding away from the community that is away from property taxes is that it quietly begins to shift control from the community to the commonwealth. 27. Will the 3 billion dollars needed each year be available after the first year? Governor Rendell’s office believes it will. 28. If Las Vegas and Atlantic City cannot guarantee that amount how can we? See answer to Number 27 above. 29. Do you plan on posting these questions/comments on your web site? Yes. 30. Last year PVSD raised taxes and received additional money from the state without refunding any money to taxpayers. Also they contract for money from a beverage company. In both cases school taxes were not reduced. If not Act 72 what is the Board’s solution. The additional state money arrived after our 2004-05 budget was passed ($76,000). It was saved to be applied to millage reduction for this year. The exclusivity agreement with the beverage companies is used to fund our Education grants that benefit students and teachers in the form of curriculum initiatives. The board will continue to scrutinize our budget and hold the line on spending but when we continue to gain 200-250 students net per year is very difficult not to raise taxes. Our pupil expenditure has consistently been the lowest in the Monroe, Northampton, Lehigh counties. 31. Has your estimate of $407 homestead rebate been compared (line for line) against Rendell’s $815? Yes. Our presentation materials are based on $500 million in gaming revenue. The Governor’s is based on $1 billion. 32. What about your EIT of 3.95 (maximum exclusion)? Has that been compared also? Yes. The numbers vary slightly due to the state estimating the value of our earned income tax. 33. Who pays for the slot machines? Casino owners 34. Why do you use Commonwealth information for salary information and district numbers for special needs children? The salary numbers are simply estimates based upon the district’s demographics to give us some idea of the impact to residents. We provided some district specific data to alert residents that the district will qualify for various referendum exceptions that will impact the actual value of the property tax reduction.
|
