Governor Tom Wolf's latest budget proposal is again asking everyone to subsidize Pennsylvania State Police coverage of municipalities with no local department. This time, it's based on a formula that includes median household income, the existence of a local police force and the cost of state police coverage.
In Northampton County, the lowest per person cost would be $2 in Bath, Chapman, Freemansburg, Walnutport, N. Catty, Hellertown, Wilkson Boro, Moore Tp, Northampton, Easton and Bethlehem.
$4 per person - Plainfield, Bangor, Pen Argyl and Wind Gap.
$5 per person - Bethlehem Tp, Hanover Tp, Lower Saucon Tp, Lehigh Tp, Bushkill Tp and Upper Nazareth Tp.
$6 per person - Lower Nazareth pays $6 per person.
$8 per person - Nazareth, East Bangor, Roseto, and Portland
$10 per person - Palmer and Forks
$16 per person - Upper Mt Bethel, Glendon and West Easton.
$20 per person - Allen and E Allen.
$21 per person - Tatamy, Stockertown, Washington Tp,
$41 per person - Williams and Lower Mt Bethel.
In Lehigh County, the breakdown is as follows:
$1 per person in Allentown
$2 per person - Coopersburg, Macungie, Coplay, Slatington, Fountain Hill, Catty, Emmaus, Bethlehem, Whitehall
$5 per person - S. Whitehall, U Saucon, Salisbury and Alburtis.
$8 per person in Hanover (LC), Heidelberg and Washington (LC)
$20 per person in N Whitehall.
$23 per person in U Macungie
$77 per person in Lower Macungie, Upper Milford, Lynn, Lower Milford, Weisenberg and Lowhill
44 comments:
About time and that is low!
Does he then propose, reducing the turnpike fees in exchanged for this new tax?, I bet not, and is this new tax going to be segregated or put in the general budget?
Maybe all this should be blended into Allentown’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone spending scheme. Similar racket.
Why should municipalities that fund their own PDs pay ANY of the bill for those who won't fund their own cops? Municipalities that are taking advantage of cheap PSP coverage are adhering to Friedman economics of the invisible hand of self interest and taking whatever the rules of the game permit. In that spirit, the rules of the game should be changed, such that the invisible hand will direct them toward police solutions that the rest of us needn't fund for them.
So Allentown has to pay $110,000? when its residents are already paying for a full police department? So when it takes APD 3-4 hours to respond to a complaint in West Allentown, I can now just call the PSP directly when a crime is occuring?
Sorry, but this retired old lady in Forks does not agree. The Easton Area School is already taxing me out of my home. Ten dollars may not seem like much, but added to other expenses, it is burdensome. There are still modestly sized and priced older housing neighborhoods in Forks. I don't think it is unreasonable for a retired widow to remain in her home.
Dead in arrival. NO municipality struggling to make budget with their own PD should pay a dime to subsidize a wealthy township too cheap to fund their own PD.
This is insane, Palmer Township in Forks Township $10 a person, I must’ve drove past there ghettos and never noticed them.
A few thoughts on the comments here:
Anon 435am, no doubt it'll go to the general fund. And even if $$ are segregated (i.e., Act 89 gas tax increase for road repair), our fearless leaders in Harrisburg still will find a way to funnel it into the general fund. For example, $4.25 billion in Act 89 funds were diverted from road repair to state police costs since 2012 according to PA Auditor General DePasquale.
Anon 831am, I feel for you, but the reality is the 65+ age demographic has the highest net worth in the country. According to the Brookings Institution, from 1989 to 2016 the median net worth of families age 65 or older increased by 68 percent while the median net worth of families 35 or younger decreased by 25 percent. By and large, older people are not poor and we should stop treating them that way.
Anon 838am, if a municipality is struggling to make their budget, should they even exist as a municipality? Same goes for school districts. If you can't afford to be independent, then you lose your independence.
All the comments re charging a fee if you already have a police department - you use the state police too, just not at the same level. So your fee is much lower.
We can talk all day about waste in Harrisburg (and if you really want to get agita, take another look at state and local pension deficits). But people should pay for what they consume, that's only fair.
It is time for A BIG CHANGE in the way Police Protection is provided to local municipalities. Northampton County can and should provide police service to all municipalities the same as they do with 911 service. If you have your own police department you pay nothing for a new tax needed to pay for police coverage but if you don't have a police department you must come under the County Plan for police protection just like you do for 911.Only those municipalities receiving the service pay for the service. If you can provide the service cheaper by not participating in the County Police Department Services, then you don't have to be part of the County plan. It is called regionalization of services. The County should do a comprehensive Study and make a report to the voters and municipalities of the benefits for such a plan. Oh, I guess that's too much to ask for our elected officials to get off their dead asses and do some work. The State should then pass a law that exempts any County who provides police protection County wide from paying into the State sytem to provide police protection to freeloaders.
The argument for assessing all municipalities, even those with their own police force, is that they rely on PSP's lab and will bring PSP in for major crimes.
Everyone wants somebody else to pay. I recently had a discussion with a recycling advocate, and I am for recycling, but when they heard it now cost $7.00 to recycle they were outraged and I suspect will no longer engage in recycling.
As for rural communities, we certainly don't have the crime problems of the cities and the cities highways 22, 78, 33 and other major highways are still policed by the state police, they also use the state police for lots of investigations and back-up. I suspect they still use the state Police more than the rural communities.
I am a township resident and the state police primary function is highways. Maybe we should start township volunteer sheriffs and deputies, just like the volunteer fireman. I suspect they would be more effective in preventing crime. The police mostly just investigate crime, after the fact.
One other thing, it looks the governor wants to charge the more conservative townships and municipalities more than those populated by democrats. Is he biased in his formula?
He may be sorry he ever proposed this fiasco.
9.09, here we go, millions for studies and consultants and a new reason for regionalism which is wealth transfer from rural communities to the cities. The cities should get their policies in order to pay their way.
Holy cow, Bernie is now posting a picture with a suit and tie instead of sweats. Looks like he is planning on running for something.
Why the heck should median income have any bearing on the cost of policing? It should be based on the number of calls and the cost of those calls, period. That is, if at all. We already pay taxes.
Speaking only for Macungie (Borough), its PD ends up providing more service out in PSP territory (Lower Mac & Upper Milford) than PSP does inside the borough. So charging the borough for PSP seems unfair unless there's a complementary method to charge the state when it uses the borough's police services.
"Holy cow, Bernie is now posting a picture with a suit and tie instead of sweats. Looks like he is planning on running for something."
No worries there, lol.
All this clown does is take our earned money. Tax,Tax,Tax. How the hell do these people keep getting elected? I know, must be using Norco Voting machines. This state of ours is out of control with taxes and wasteful spending. Time to consider a move out of here.
If this passes it will be another "tax" that they will increase as they deem necessary - which will be every year, claiming a shortfall.
I haven't found this mystery formula they are using to determine the cost per resident imposed on each municipality.
It's time for the the counties to begin sheriff's department police services. No more police departments. Waste of so much money. The problem is the inflated egos of those in charge. Time to regionalize by County. It works in the south, why not here?
Let the Sheriff's do it like everywhere else outside of the tri-state area. PSP has enough on their plate already.
Don't we already pay for the coverage through our taxes??
Allentown does use State Police resources for investigation purposes such as digital forensics and cybercrime.
Every locality should pay something for State Police and every locality that relays on the State Police for daily patrol and investigations should pay more.
The formula for State Police assistance and patrol should be based on at least (1) types resources, (2) amount of land, and (3) per capita.
looks like the formula has a lot of political bias, Does anyone know how they came up with these numbers?
Either he wants to run for political office or he trolling for a partner.
TAXES will take up to (90 percent of out take home the ruling class does not care.
"The argument for assessing all municipalities, even those with their own police force, is that they rely on PSP's lab and will bring PSP in for major crimes."
I thought that's what the already highest individual tax burden in the country was for. NorCo's paying for a spectacularly expensive forensics center billed as the finest in the state. I pay for my township cops. I pay PA corporate and individual taxes. I pay county taxes that include the cost of a new forensics center. How does this make any sense?
Anon 142pm, PA ranks 23rd in total tax burden at a combined 8.58%. NY leads the pack at 12.97%. This ranking combines income tax, property tax and sales tax.
Still sucks but we should be factual.
SOON PA people will be leaving like new York people
When you consider a fully equipped police vehicle cost between $50 to $60K and an officer with benefits cost $100k, some of these municipalities are getting off easy. It would be interesting to see what the per capita cost of municipalities that fund their own police force vs the $77 fee proposed for the free-riding municipalities Maybe it is time for a County wide police force.
The county doesn't do anything well. Let's not give it more things to screw up.
11.21 is right, we pay plenty of taxes, now they want us to pay for the services too, they need to re-evaluate their spending on all the bullshit and reform the government worker pension plans.
This is all Bullshit. Why should towns/cities that already fund their own police have to fund
police for third-world boroughs like West Easton where their part- time police force probably only patrols a few hours a week. Another location is Wiliams Township where there are more pigs than people. This will never fly.
You can't REinvent the wheel and the wall!
This is what the gas tax increases under Corbett is paying for. I do not approve.
Yes, Easton should swallow West Easton up and incorporate it into the city.
Bernie to overtake McClure in next election for County Executive.
County police force with satellite stations at several locations for quick response times. These local police outfits are for the most part unreliable and not well trained. SB Regional proved that as did Wash. township. Local police being more responsive and understanding is just a myth that needs to be eliminated.
Seems as if wolf has fallen in line with the NIZ lumber yard/wolf indutries deliveries to add tinder to the fire of this farce.
If I have to pay this fee, I'll be calling them for assistance opening pickle jars. I call BS
The Governor had proposed a flat fee per resident for the larger municipalities without local police forces. It was Senate appropriations chair Pat Browne who insisted that the State Police had to come back to the Legislature with a formula that estimated actual expenses of the State Police per muinicipality.
First off Easton and Bethlehem, Palmer and I'm sure a few others dont need PSP for anything. And a Lab fee?? There has been a lab fee added to everything that goes to that lab already!! This is more Democrats pushing taxes and big government!!! Anyone with half a brain would know that the best way to serve the county is to have county wide police fire and rescue services except for Easton and Bethlehem. This is the norm for most of the USA and works fine. Leave the Troopers on the Highways. Problem is you have to have some people chiefs etc give up some power and that's the hard part.
12:49 Easton swallow up West Easton, you have to be the dumbest person leaving comments. Easton pays the highest property taxes (24.95 mills) West Easton (11.7 mills) Easton school taxes (65.35 mills) West Easton (58.69 mills). Stay in Easton or move there.
12:53 you forgot to add the total amount of taxes including the county, Easton-102.1 Mills—-West Easton-82.186 Mills.
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