Montour School District v. Township of Collier

83 Pa. D. & C.4th 1
CourtPennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Alleghany County
DecidedJuly 3, 2007
Docketno. GD05-032289
StatusPublished

This text of 83 Pa. D. & C.4th 1 (Montour School District v. Township of Collier) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas, Alleghany County primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Montour School District v. Township of Collier, 83 Pa. D. & C.4th 1 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2007).

Opinion

WETTICK JR., A.J.,

Motions for judgment on the pleadings of plaintiffs and defendants are the subject of this opinion and order of court.

This litigation involves 137 parcels located in a development known as Cloverleaf Estates West (Cloverleaf properties). Until 2005, the assessment records of Allegheny County described these properties as being in [3]*3Collier Township. The deeds to the properties described the properties as being in Collier Township. The properties were taxed by Collier Township and Chartiers Valley School District as though they were in Collier Township, and the persons residing in these properties were taxed as if they resided in Collier Township.

Residents of the Cloverleaf properties voted in the Collier Township and Chartiers Valley School District elections. Collier Township made available the same services to persons residing in the Cloverleaf properties that were made available to the residents of Collier Township, including police and medical services. Chartiers Valley School District provided schooling, including adult learning classes, to residents of the Cloverleaf properties.1

Robinson Township never provided any services to the residents of the Cloverleaf properties. The Montour schools were not open to any children residing in the Cloverleaf properties.

Pursuant to proceedings at GD05-006088, involving a petition to establish a lot and block system in Collier Township, in 2005 it was discovered that the Cloverleaf properties are located in Robinson Township. Prior to 2005, none of the taxing bodies had any reason to question the accuracy of the assessment records of Allegheny County listing the properties as being in Collier Township.

As of January 2, 2006, residents of the Cloverleaf properties began paying their municipal taxes to the Township of Robinson and as of July 1,2006, they began paying their school taxes to Montour School District.

[4]*4In this lawsuit, Montour School District and the Township of Robinson (Montour/Robinson) seek to recover (1) the real estate taxes the Cloverleaf property owners paid to the Township of Collier and Chartiers Valley School District (Chartiers/Collier) from 2001 to 2005; (2) the earned income, net profits, occupational privilege, and realty transfer taxes which Cloverleaf residents paid Chartiers/Collier from 2000 to 2005; and (3) cable television franchise fees attributable to the subscribing Cloverleaf residents from 2000 to the present.2

The issue raised by this lawsuit is whether the law imposes any obligation on Chartiers/Collier to pay to Montour/Robinson taxes which Chartiers/Collier collected during the period of time in which they assumed responsibility for furnishing government services to the persons residing in the Cloverleaf properties.3 Montour/ Robinson correctly state that Chartiers/Collier had no legal right to collect these taxes and fees that are the subject of this litigation. However, this case does not involve claims by owners and residents of the Cloverleaf properties to recover taxes which they paid. The issue, instead, is why Montour/Robinson may recover from Chartiers/Collier payments that owners and residents of the Cloverleaf properties made to Chartiers/Collier during the period of time Chartiers/Collier was providing government services to the owners and residents of the Cloverleaf properties.

It appears to be the position of Montour/Robinson that they are not necessarily entitled to every dollar that [5]*5Chartiers/Collier received from the Cloverleaf property owners. Instead, it appears to be the position of Montour/ Robinson that the Cloverleaf property owners paid more in taxes than the cost of the government services which these property owners received. This windfall belongs to Montour/Robinson rather than Chartiers/Collier.4

Montour/Robinson’s position is based on an improper characterization of the manner in which taxes are imposed. Budgets for school districts and municipalities are based on anticipated revenues, most of which will be received from property taxes, income taxes, and the like. The purpose of the annual taxes is to pay for the government services furnished in the year in which the taxes are imposed. Under the Uniformity Clause of the Pennsylvania Constitution, each property owner shall pay his or her proportionate share of the costs of government services which shall be measured by the value of his or her property (or the amount of his or her income) to that of his or her neighbor. Downingtown Area School District v. Chester County Board of Assessment Appeals, 590 Pa. 459, 913 A.2d 194, 199 (2006). Since the Cloverleaf property owners paid only their proportionate share of the government services which Chartiers/Collier provided, there is no windfall that Chartiers/Collier should disgorge. Furthermore, the claim that this court should prevent a windfall is being raised by governmental bodies seeking payments of Cloverleaf property owners that have no connection to any services provided by these governmental bodies.

[6]*6For these reasons, Montour/Robinson are not entitled to monies paid to Chartiers/Collier in prior years unless there is legislation supporting their claim.

While Montour/Robinson cite legislation stating that they have authority to levy, assess, and collect taxes on real property within the township and school district, including deed transfer taxes, and to levy earned income, net profit, and occupational/privilege taxes upon persons doing business or residing within Robinson, no laws permit them to levy taxes against Chartiers or Collier. Thus, this legislation does not support the claims of Montour/Robinson to taxes Cloverleaf residents paid to Chartiers/Collier for government services which were available to the persons paying the taxes.

Montour/Robinson rely on section 307 of the First Class Township Code, 53 RS. §55307 which reads as follows:

“Whenever the boundaries of any township have been altered or ascertained and established, the court of quarter sessions may adjust the taxes, debts, and expenses for township, municipal and school purposes between the townships, municipalities and school districts affected.”

The March 23, 2005 order of Judge O’Reilly of this court at GD05-006088 establishing the lot and block system in Collier, set January 2, 2006 as the date on which Robinson Township would levy taxes against the Cloverleaf residents and would assume responsibility for providing municipal services. Prior to that date, Collier continued to provide municipal services.5

[7]*7January 2,2006 was the date the boundary line became permanently effective. Under section 2-226 of the School Code of 1949, 24 P.S. §2-226, when the boundary lines of a school district are changed, the change shall take effect at the beginning of the first school year following the change in boundary lines. Consequently, this boundary change did not take effect until July 1, 2006.

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Related

Commonwealth v. Lopez
663 A.2d 746 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1995)
MacElree v. Chester County
667 A.2d 1188 (Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, 1995)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
83 Pa. D. & C.4th 1, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/montour-school-district-v-township-of-collier-pactcomplallegh-2007.