Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Act 1 Results for Allegheny County
In Allegheny County—where discussion of property taxes and assessments is a local pastime—none of the 42 school districts voted to implement the Act 1 option to authorize an increase in the earned income tax or a shift to a personal income tax in order to lower school property taxes.
The margin of defeat in most districts was overwhelming: the average in all the districts was 3 to 1. Not surprisingly, the Allegheny Valley School District proposal to levy a nearly 3 percent personal income tax was defeated by the largest margin, 8 to 1. In the eight districts proposing a switch from the current earned income to personal income tax, the average margin of defeat was 4 to 1.
The highest affirmative percentage was in the Wilkinsburg School District, where 38 percent of the district’s voters opted for the shift. Thirteen other districts had a “yes” vote threshold that exceeded 30 percent.
The unpopularity of the measure here is reflected in the statewide results as well where it looks like only 4 districts of over 370 that reported have authorized the shift.
The margin of defeat in most districts was overwhelming: the average in all the districts was 3 to 1. Not surprisingly, the Allegheny Valley School District proposal to levy a nearly 3 percent personal income tax was defeated by the largest margin, 8 to 1. In the eight districts proposing a switch from the current earned income to personal income tax, the average margin of defeat was 4 to 1.
The highest affirmative percentage was in the Wilkinsburg School District, where 38 percent of the district’s voters opted for the shift. Thirteen other districts had a “yes” vote threshold that exceeded 30 percent.
The unpopularity of the measure here is reflected in the statewide results as well where it looks like only 4 districts of over 370 that reported have authorized the shift.
