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Referendum Suggestion Void?

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One of the recommendations made by the Affordable Housing Task Force in its report released in late May was for the creation of a fund of $10 million annually to provide “…a substantial pool of resources to directly target the most pressing housing needs in our city” (see page 15 of the report).

The Task Force listed a variety of revenue options, including a 1% increase in the City’s portion of the realty transfer tax.  This was projected to raise $9 million a year.

No matter the choice eventually settled upon, the Task Force recommended that a public referendum, like the 2011 one that increased the City’s real estate tax for funding the library system, be used (see page 18).  Now it appears that there won’t be a referendum even though supporters have collected more than enough signatures.

Again, the Task Force’s recommendation was just that, and the last time the realty transfer tax was increased based on another recommendation, that of the Act 47 recovery team.  Pittsburgh was levying the transfer tax at 1.5%, and raised it 0.5% to 2% (the state and school districts also levy a transfer tax, but Pittsburgh Public Schools is the only one in the County levying at 1%, the rest at 0.5%).  The Act 47 team did not recommend a referendum.

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Allegheny Institute
Allegheny Institute

The Allegheny Institute is a non-profit research and education organization. Our mission is to defend the interests of taxpayers, citizens and businesses against an increasingly burdensome and intrusive government.

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