BELLEFONTE — This week, Bellefonte Borough Council reviewed a slate of Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs (PSAB) resolutions they plan to support or submit for consideration by the state government.

Council reaffirmed its support for several previously adopted resolutions and also proposed a series of new initiatives addressing municipal priorities, including property tax relief, infrastructure maintenance, public safety and regulatory modernization. The resolutions are intended to guide the state legislature on issues directly affecting boroughs and ensure policies reflect municipal needs.

A memo detailing the board’s positions on past resolutions, along with draft versions of the proposed new ones, is scheduled for formal approval at council’s March 16 meeting.

The deadline to submit resolutions ahead of PSAB’s annual conference is April 1, 2026, allowing the organization time to conduct research and present the measures to state lawmakers.

Council discussed the following resolutions:

— Tax-exempt property assistance (2025-01): Sponsored by Bellefonte last year, the resolution supports legislation providing annual state financial assistance to municipalities for tax-exempt properties.

— Longtime owner property tax relief (2025-02): Supports an amendment to the state constitution to provide for a Longtime Owner-Occupant Program that would freeze future tax increases for longtime owner-occupants as well as provide property tax relief for senior citizens 65 and older. The relief would be administered through the homestead/farmstead exclusion, require seniors to have resided in the home for at least 10 years and dedicate future gaming revenue to the Property Tax Relief Fund to reimburse municipalities for the exclusion.

Resolutions 2025-01 and 2025-02 are tied to existing House bills, PA HB451 and PA HB1702, and are intended to promote them in Harrisburg.

“It would benefit the residents by not increasing their taxes every year, but at the same time, it may affect the tax revenue that is already directly going to the municipalities,” said Councilwoman Deb Cleeton.

Councilman Jon Eaton opposed the sponsorship, arguing that, similar to California’s Proposition 13, it could create two tiers of taxpayers and significantly reduce municipal revenue.

— PennDOT stormwater responsibility (2025-09): Supports amending the Pennsylvania State Highway Law to require PennDOT to maintain all stormwater infrastructure serving state roads within boroughs.

“Right now, boroughs are the only municipalities in Pennsylvania that have to take care of their stormwater infrastructure on state highways,” Cleeton said.

Council President Doug Johnson added, “As a borough, we don’t think that’s fair.”

— Prevailing wage threshold reform (2020-07): Reauthorized by PSAB for 2025, the resolution supports legislation to raise prevailing wage thresholds with provisions for future adjustments and to allow certain municipal and educational exemptions.

Borough officials said they are effectively capped at $100,000 annually for paving projects, as exceeding that amount triggers prevailing wage requirements that significantly increase costs.

“That severely impacts what we are able to do as a municipality,” said Cleeton.

Council said the threshold results in fewer roads being paved and argued that raising or eliminating it would allow the borough to better maintain municipal roadways.

— Consumer fireworks repeal (2022-04): Reauthorized for 2025, the resolution calls for repeal of the 2017 state law permitting the sale, purchase and possession of consumer fireworks by Pennsylvania residents.

The ban, which was enacted in 1939, was meant to limit safety risks, property damage and noise concerns.

“Every year, the day after the Fourth of July, we have the same conversation about fireworks in the borough,” Cleeton said.

She added that while a local ordinance could help address related concerns, “if the state could repeal the act which authorized the sale of fireworks in the state, that would go a long way toward helping to mitigate the problem.”

— Local use of automated traffic enforcement (2023-06): Council reiterated support for legislation enabling municipal police to use radar, LiDAR and other electronic speed enforcement technologies currently available to state police.

“I’d like to see this go through before I die,” Councilwoman Barbara Dann said. “That would be very valuable for us to catch people who are speeding, be able to enforce it and go to court with that information.”

Eaton suggested expanding the request to include speed cameras as a cost-efficient enforcement tool.

— E-bike law modernization (new): Councilwoman Joanne Tosti-Vasey recommended that the PSAB urge the state legislature to update and clarify state e-bike laws to make them easier for the public to follow.

Tosti-Vasey said PA Downtown Center’s Sam Pearson’s recent presentation highlighted how complex the current law is.

“What we need to do is adopt the PeopleForBikes three-class model,” she said, noting it has been enacted in more than 40 states.

Under that framework, manufacturers often affix a permanent class label to each e-bike, informing consumers of the type of vehicle they are purchasing and how it may be used under state law.

She also recommended helmet requirements for Class 3 e-bikes and age-based restrictions for other classes.

— Skills games regulation and revenue sharing (new): Interim Borough Manager David Pribulka suggested that PSAB pursue “sensible” regulations on skills games, an issue which is already under discussion but with no bill advancing out of committee.

Pribulka said, in his view, any legislation should include a municipal revenue-sharing component.

“Having a revenue share is important so that we can adequately capitalize on some of the returns from that use to be able to fund our needs to service those establishments,” he said, referencing public safety and public works costs.

While the borough has authority to impose an amusement tax, similar to a license fee, officials said their preference is to secure a share of generated revenue rather than rely solely on local taxation.

He also suggested council endorse limitations to prevent establishments devoted exclusively to games of skill from operating as de facto casinos.

— Mandated countywide property reassessment (new): Pribulka also suggested legislation requiring Pennsylvania counties to conduct countywide property tax reassessments at regular intervals, possibly every five or 10 years. The state currently does not mandate reassessments.

“I think that would go a long way toward helping stabilize that revenue source and provide for adequate revenue streams to address increasing costs,” Pribulka said.

— Local Services Tax increase (new): Pribulka suggested council also endorse raising the local services tax, a revenue source paid by workers in Bellefonte, with a significant portion remitted to the borough. He noted that even a moderate increase could help strengthen this otherwise stagnant revenue stream.

— AI use guidelines for municipalities (new): Finally, Pribulka recommended establishing clear guidelines for municipal use of artificial intelligence, particularly when integrating private-sector software into day-to-day operations. He noted there is currently no framework defining appropriate limitations, including those needed to address cybersecurity risks.