No Tax Hike in Buckingham

Buckingham residents have a nice gift in time for the holidays – no township tax hike for next year.

The township’s property tax rate of 5.5 mills hasn’t increased in the last few years, actually. So, on an average home assessed at $48,900, the tax bill remains steady at $269.

Buckingham’s preliminary budget for 2012 was presented and approved last month. It’s been available for viewing at the township office and on its website.

This year the $16.6 million budget was adopted unanimously by the three supervisors – unlike last year when the figures were a bone of contention for supervisor Henry Rowan, who felt the township was carrying a $500,000 surplus that he believed shouldn't be held in reserve.

When development within the township was at its peak, builders contributed funding toward creation of community parks, for example, but with building almost at a standstill, those funds have dried up.

In next year’s budget, the township plans to transfer $1.2 million from its general fund balance to its park fund for , creating additional athletic fields and upgrading facilities.

It’s a project that Rowan wholeheartedly endorses.

Most of the 5.5 mills (4.5) are dedicated to bonds taken out in 1995, 1999 and 2008 for open space preservation; .75 mills goes toward funding for the volunteer fire companies covering the township and the remaining .25 mills is for emergency services.

At Wednesday night’s meeting, the board approved continuing its agreement with the three fire companies that cover the township: Midway, Lingohocken and Doylestown.

Of the .75 mills, Midway gets the majority of funding (67%) followed by Lingohocken (20%) and then Doylestown (13%).

Total proposed expenditures are projected at $16.6 million.

Supervisors also approved a resolution fixing the earned income tax rate at 1%, which is shared with Central Bucks School District; set the local services tax rate at $10 and the realty transfer tax rate at 1%.

In other matters, supervisors:

• approved the agreement of sale for conservation easement of the Comly property – more than 55 acres at 1125 Forest Grove Road. “I’m very grateful,” said supervisor Maggie Rash, who sits on the agricultural and open space preservation committee. “It’s a property that I never in a million years would have expected to preserve.”
• approved measures to handle a buildup of wastewater levels due to the season’s heavy rainfall and the hurricane and tropical storm that passed through the region a few months ago. The Township entered into an agreement with Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority to discharge some of its excess effluent to the Harvey Avenue wastewater treatment plant in Doylestown. It will also pay GS Developers Inc. $63,940 for an emergency connection from the Cold Spring wastewater system to the Bucks County Water and Sewer Authority.

Township offices will close at noon Dec. 23 and all day Dec. 26 and Jan. 2.

The Jan. 28 board of supervisors meeting has been canceled. Its annual reorganization meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 3, with a regular board meeting work session scheduled for 6 p.m. on Jan. 11.