Coaldale to raise taxes by 1 mill

Coaldale Borough will raise tax rates by 3% this year to cover rising expenses and continue work on the borough’s streets.

Council voted unanimously to approve a 2020 budget which includes a 1-mill tax increase. The tax rate will be 30.54 mills.

Under the adopted budget, the owner of a property assessed at $25,000 would see their tax bill increase by $25 to $763.50.

The spending plan includes a total of $2,340,354 in expenses.

Councilwoman Claire Remington said the tax increase is necessary for the borough to continue covering rising expenses while making investments in its infrastructure.

“We can’t not do anything and improve the infrastructure in this town,” Remington said.

She said the borough has seen increases in the cost of insurance and its annual pension contributions.

She said last year the borough dedicated a portion of its annual tax revenue to maintaining streets in town.

“I don’t think we’re asking for too much and we’re doing a lot,” she said.

Remington said the borough would be facing a more difficult financial situation if not for the work of Portnoff Law Associates, which has collected thousands of dollars worth of unpaid garbage bills from residents, and recently started collecting unpaid borough taxes as well.

The borough has also looked for revenue sources outside the borough. In the past two years the town received federal grants to purchase two police vehicles with the borough paying just a fraction of the cost.

They are currently seeking a $423,000 grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission to reconstruct Phillips Street along Kline’s Hill.