Dec 30, 2022 4 min read

CHARLEROI – Council adopted a budget for 2023 with a tax increase, but it is not as much as proposed earlier this month.

Council voted 5-2 Tuesday to approve a $3.626 million spending plan that increases millage from 6.85 to 9.85 mills. The budget also includes a $500,000 tax anticipation loan, which will cover cash flow shortfalls at the beginning of the fiscal year.

One mill generates $121,046.32 to the borough.

Borough Manager Matt Staniszewski said the tax rate will result in an increase of $12.25 per month for a borough resident whose home is assessed at $50,000 and the homeowner pays during the 2% discount period.

It was one of three options presented by Staniszewski: one that would have kept taxes steady; one presented Dec. 16 containing a 6-mill increase, and the one approved Tuesday.

“This is not, per se, a long-term solution,” Staniszewski said Thursday. “It balances out and provides a compromise to continue to maintain services while not creating a huge impact to the taxpayer.”

Voting in favor of the budget Tuesday were Paul Pivovarnik, Larry Celaschi, Joe Smith, Randy DiPiazza and Jerry Jericho. Nancy Ellis and Frank Paterra voted against the budget.

Paterra maintained his stance of being opposed to a tax increase.

“I wasn’t voting for a tax raise, period,” Paterra said Thursday. “They put forth a 3-mill tax increase which I was against, and I think the people were against it.”

Several options have been discussed to generate money for the borough, as Staniszewski reported in October the borough was looking at a $1.1 million deficit for various reasons, including $478,644 in unfunded obligations.

One option that has been discussed is the possible sale of the Authority of the Borough of Charleroi (ABC).

On Tuesday, council voted against a motion to accept a $2 million offer from ABC to purchase the borough’s sewer lines and assume MS4 duties. The offer would include the authority paying off the borough’s PennVEST loan, which is about $4.4 million.

Voting against the motion were Celaschi, Paterra, Smith and DiPiazza, while Ellis, Jericho and Pivovarnik voted yes.

Paterra said Thursday that he asked Solicitor Sean Logue if the borough would face any problems if the offer was accepted without an asset evaluation and was told the borough could be surcharged.

“We’re getting a lot of opposition from the water authority to appraise an asset that we own. That doesn’t make sense,” Paterra said. “If we go ahead and agree to a $2 million sale for something that we don’t even know what it’s valued at, the state can come down on us.”

Logue said the borough needs to explore the matter further. He added that ABC has never submitted a formal, detailed, written offer to the borough.

“I’ve explained to them at every meeting that this is a borough asset and you owe a fiduciary duty to the borough of Charleroi to exercise at least a minimum of due diligence to at least come up with a fair market value price before you can sell a major asset,” Logue said. “Don’t sell it until you get somebody who’s qualified can say it’s a great deal.”

Dennis Paluso, ABC solicitor, said the authority feels the offer is fair.

“We thought it was one that could benefit the residents of Charleroi without having a rate increase for any of the customers in the 14 municipalities that we serve,” Paluso said.

Paluso said he was asked Tuesday if authority board members would be willing to meet with borough representatives as negotiations continue. He said he would bring that up to the ABC board when it meets Jan. 17.

Representatives of ABC have said they are not interested in selling or dissolution of the authority. The authority passed a resolution Oct. 25 opposing a sale.

ABC provides water and sewer services to the boroughs of Charleroi, North Charleroi, Speers, Twilight and Dunlevy, as well as Fallowfield Township. The authority also provides water service to the boroughs of Donora and Cokeburg, the city of Monessen and portions of Somerset and Rostraver townships.