NorCo Council Adopts Top Priorities of State County Ass'n

Northampton County is a member of the County Comm'rs Ass'n of Pennsylvania (CCAP). At their March 21 meeting, County Council voted unanimously to endorse CCAP's top eight priorities. They are listed below. 

1) 911 Funding and reauthorization. - Current 911 funding revenues have failed to keep pace with the increasing costs of the system, which must support county future needs, including Next Gen 911. The current surcharge is $1.95, and that is set to expire in February 2026. 

2) A mental health base funding increase. - Counties provide community-based mental health services/ These include community residential programs; family-based support; and outpatient care and crisis intervention, 

3) County inmates with mental health issues. - According to an assessment done by NorCo's health provider at the jail, 72% either are or were suffering a mental illness. A whopping 23% suffer from sever mental illness with current and acute symptoms. 

4) Increase state prevailing wage threshold from $25,000 (set in1961) to $250,000. - Yes, this would enable governments to use limited resources to provide the maximum level of services possible. But it would be at the expense of blue-collar workers, both union and nonunion. I am surprised Democrats on County Council voted for this, and either I'm missing something, or they failed to read this portion of the resolution.

5) Right-to-Know Law reforms. - During election season, that office actually conducts three elections - mail-in ballots, early voting, and traditional voting at the polls. They really have no time to respond to numerous requests during certain periods. Moreover, some individuals use the Right to Know Law vexatiously, making it impossible for smaller governments to do anything other than respond to multiple requests. Counties have seen an influx in large, complex record requests, as well as requests for records with the intent to burden and bog down the records request process, particularly around elections.

6) Vote-By-Mail Reforms. - Counties need to be able to start pre-canvassing MIBs before 7 am on election day. Moreover, the deadline to apply a mail-in ballot should end 15 days before an election to give officials more time to get ready. Finally, the law concerning drop boxes should be made clear. 

7) Broadband access and development. - Expanding the infrastructure should enable more competition, which should bring prices down for seniors and those on fixed or low incomes. 

8) Address the juvenile detention capacity crisis. - Unfortunately, Northampton County's Juvenile Justice Center is still understaffed. 

Counties Want to Impose Sales and Income Taxes

CCAP, or the County Commissioners Ass'n of Pa, calls itself the "voice of Pennsylvania counties." It's the lobbying arm of the state's 67 counties, and is pushing the state legislature this year for something it calls "tax fairness," but is actually the opposite.

Most of the revenue flowing into county coffers comes in the form of real estate taxes. Those are based on the value of the property owned. Though the millage rate is the same, those with more wealth (the landed gentry) tend to fund most of the county government because they own most of the real estate. Of course, some wealthy landowners take advantage of preferential assessments that is permitted under state law to those who own 10 acres or more. That was intended to help farmers, but it also helps dentists, lawyers and financial advisers who build McMansions on sprawling estates.

Instead of complaining about a tax unfairness that favors the well-heeled, CCAP wants to be able to impose both a 1% earned income tax and a 1% sales tax. This is apparently a top priority of county lobbyists.

What this will do is shift the tax burden from the wealthy to the poor. Those who are living from paycheck to paycheck will feel the brunt of a sales and income tax disproportionately. It is a regressive tax.

I'd have no problem with a graduated income tax in which those who earn more pay a higher percentage, similar to what exists in Pennsylvania. But that would violate the state constitution's uniformity clause.

If CCAP were really interested in tax fairness, it would urge state lawmakers to prevent the landed gentry from benefiting from preferential assessments unless the land is used for agriculture, logging or as a recreational tract.    

Incidentally, the state is heading into this fiscal year about $1.5 billion in the hole,and a large part of the reason for that (about $1.1 billion's worth) is because that's how far state officials were off in their projections on sales and income tax revenue last year. .