PITTSBURGH TIMES-TRIBUNE Editorial: Amid the clamor at the Capitol last week over the historic House vote on privatizing the state liquor monopoly, a major resolution that could have a sweeping impact on most municipal governments in the state quietly passed the Senate, 30-20.
The measure is to amend the state constitution, restoring the Legislature’s ability to define what constitutes a nonprofit entity for the purpose of local and state exemption. Last year the state Supreme Court, ruling on a dispute over a 1997 law, found that the courts, rather than the Legislature, have the authority to define nonprofit eligibility for tax exemptions…
Over the last 20 years, many ideas have been introduced in the Legislature to help municipal governments deal with the nonprofit issue, including the provision of state aid to cities where more than 20 percent of property is tax-exempt… (more)
EDITOR: A simple fix would be to tax current tax exempted properties at half the normal rate.
