State should require reassessments
The Pennsylvania House of Representatives is unhappy that about $237 million in wage taxes isn’t being collected annually, so it voted 171-29 to create 69 collectors to replace the existing 560. Apparently, the House believes the current system, where 2,900 municipalities and school districts collect about $2 billion, just isn’t efficient enough. But if the House is so concerned about justice, fairness and efficiency when it comes to tax collection, it would stand first in line to pass a bill requiring counties to conduct property reassessments at least every five years – and would help out with the funding.
That way, counties would not be permitted to let what most taxpayers feel is the most onerous tax of all – the property tax – get so out of whack that it becomes fundamentally unfair. There’s simply no reason why counties should be allowed to go 10, 20, 30 or even 40-plus years without a reassessment.