Dec 19, 2018 3 min read

CHARLEROI – Borough residents will likely see their first tax increase in 20 years.

During a special budget meeting Monday, council voted to advertise its $2.2 million proposed budget and members unanimously approved a .92-mill tax increase. Under the new budget, the millage rate will jump from 5.33 to 6.25.

According to Councilwoman Jeannine Motycki, the tax hike will generate an additional $100,000 in revenue for the borough.

“This modest tax increase will help to make up for $70,000 the borough lost with the Washington County tax reassessments,” said Motycki, who serves as finance chair. “It will also help to pay for street equipment, road paving and street repairs, as well as cover some of the costs for our police contribution.”

Motycki said council needed more money to cover expenses but decided to stay below the limit of the Washington County tax.

“We didn’t want to give our residents sticker shock,” she said. “The tax increase will be a little less than $1 more a month for the average Charleroi resident. We felt that if we could stay less than a mill this year, maybe we can limit a mill increase next year to a quarter or a tenth to cover more road repairs.”

Council members also voted to increase the police budget by 4.5 percent and they approved the salary and health insurance benefits for a full-time driver for the fire department.

Motycki noted that Charleroi’s 2019 budget may be slightly lower, pending some possible savings the borough may achieve as it finalizes the details of its health insurance plan.

Councilman Larry Celaschi voted for the tax increase on the condition that the council considers decreasing taxes if the borough decides to sell its municipal authority.

“We should give money back to the taxpayers if the sale of the municipal authority goes through,” he said.

Earlier in the month, Celaschi told council that the City of McKeesport generated $156 million by selling its sewer system to Pennsylvania American Water. He estimated that Charleroi could raise about $200 million by selling its municipal authority to a private company.

Also, during the meeting, council decided to give extra personal days for the borough’s secretaries and its parking enforcement officer, rather than approving a 2.5 percent pay raise.

“We know what those women do and it’s heartbreaking that a pay raise couldn’t happen this year,” said Motycki. “But I couldn’t justify asking the residents to pay more in taxes while we voted for a pay raise. We will revisit this again next year, depending on the budget. I’m hopeful we will be able to give those employees the raises they deserve. In the meantime, we wanted to do something to show our appreciation for their hard work.”

Council President Jerry Jericho said that council had little recourse but to raise taxes.

“We don’t like to increase taxes, but it was long overdue,” he said. “I want to thank Jeannine and Solicitor Steve Toprani for all the extra hours they put in to fine tune the budget. They really had to crunch the numbers to make the budget work.”

In other action, council voted to enter the state Department of Community and Economic Development’s Early Intervention Program. DCED works with municipalities that are experiencing financial difficulties and helps them find matching grant funds to develop comprehensive multiyear financial plans and establish short- and long-term financial objectives.

Charleroi’s budget will be advertised for 10 days at the borough building, before council members cast a final vote on Dec. 27. Charleroi’s police board will vote on its final 2019 budget this Wednesday.