No decision on tax breaks

Officials say more information is needed regarding law allowing tax reductions for active volunteer firefighters or ambulance crew

It’s too soon to make a decision on whether or not to opt into the state’s new Act 172 of 2016, Souderton Borough Council and Franconia Township Board of Supervisors said at separate May 15 meetings.

“What it does is it allows municipalities to provide up to a 20 percent discount in real estate taxes or a flat discount in earned income tax credits to active volunteer fire company members and nonprofit emergency medical services,” Souderton Borough Manager Mike Coll said at the Souderton work session meeting.

“I bring this out because this is starting to get some traction, and it’s relatively new and the implementation of this is really not completely set,” Coll said.

The act was approved last year and went into effect earlier this year. Coll said he has received some information about it and expects to get more.

“It seems like most are suggesting that if you do anything that you consider doing something with the earned income tax credit, not the real estate tax, and they talked definitely about doing some kind of a flat amount,” he said.

“There would have to be some type of service criteria,” Coll said. “Just because you’re a member

isn’t quite good enough. You have to be an active member.”

There would also have to be a way of handling grievances if a member felt they met the criteria but they had not received the reduction, he said.

The decision could also depend on what neighboring towns do since Souderton could have firefighters who live in neighboring towns in the Souderton coverage area, he said.

“I think the act had a good intention, and that is to try to reward and try to push interest in volunteer firefighters and keeping them,” Coll said, “but I don’t think a lot of thought was put into how you implement the law.”

The law allows the towns to give the tax breaks to the volunteers but doesn’t require it, council member Richard Halbom said.

“But it requires us to figure out how to implement it,” council member Jeff Gross said. “That’s one of the problems with this,”

Halbom said. “They really haven’t fleshed out the details very well.”

Coll said he is still gathering information and does not yet have a recommendation on the matter. Perseverance Volunteer Fire Company of Souderton President Jim Gallagher will probably come to the council in the future for further discussion, Coll said.

At the Franconia meeting on the same night, Telford Volunteer Fire Company President Jerry Guretse asked about Act 172.

“I’d just like to bring it to your attention and ask that the board of supervisors take it under consideration and see if there’s anything that you can do for us,” Guretse said. Souderton and Telford are two of the fire companies whose coverage area includes parts of Franconia.

“This is on the radar of many of the local volunteer fire companies throughout the commonwealth since it is a new law,” Franconia Township Manager Jon Hammer said.

The Franconia board will discuss it at the board’s June work session, board Chairman Grey Godshall said.