An entry in Gov. Tom Wolf’s proposed 2019-20 budget could wallop Cranberry Township residents with a $50 per person annual tax.
The surcharge would be levied on municipalities that have no in-house police force but rely on state police for coverage.
“For Cranberry Township, if this goes through, it will cost $330,000 a year, or $50 a person,” township manager Chad Findlay said at a supervisors meeting Thursday. “It is something to keep an eye on.”
For communities with less than 2,000 residents, the annual charge would be $8 a person. It would go as high as $166 per capita for municipalities with a population at 20,000 or higher.
In Venango County, there are five municipalities that have full-time police officers on duty. They are Oil City, Franklin, Sugarcreek Borough, Emlenton Borough and Polk Borough. Those communities are not included in the state police surcharge provision.
Elsewhere in Venango County, all but three municipalities have populations that are below the 2,000 mark. As a result, their fee would be $8 per person.
In Sandycreek Township and Cornplanter Township, their populations would translate into a $17 per person fee for police coverage. The annual tally would be $37,689 for Sandycreek Township and $40,188 for Cornplanter Township.
Cranberry fee is highest
That leaves Cranberry Township as the Venango County municipality with the highest per capita rate. The population is pegged at 6,546 and that equates, at $50 per person, to an annual police coverage cost of $327,300.
While the Cranberry supervisors didn’t comment on the state budget proposal, they were strongly opposed to a similar measure included in the state budget last year.
In that version, municipalities relying on state police coverage would have seen a $25 per person charge. The fee has doubled from the previous year’s proposal.
Findlay said he is contacting state legislators to consider “how do you become exempt from this tax”.
Support is urged
Last summer, the department announced it intended to relocate two offices from Washington, D.C., to a rural location. Clarion has proposed the agency consider the Trinity Development Co. site.
While no decision has been made, McSparren said, “We need to support it because some of those jobs would come out of Venango County.”
Harold Best, chairman of the supervisors, said the township would send a letter of support.
Ben Breniman, the township zoning officer, told the supervisors that six building permits were issued in the township in the last month.
The estimated construction costs, he said, were $118,350.
Bonnie Summers, a member of the township economic development committee, said the group has scheduled the annual Cranberry Business Expo from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 19 at the Cranberry Mall.
A new addition to the expo will be the inclusion of non-profits.
