Hempfield will hold the line on real estate taxes in 2009, township Manager Rob Ritson said Wednesday.
At the same time, residents in so-called street light districts will pay "slightly more" next year, according to Ritson.
Supervisors are expected to adopt a tentative budget Monday at their regular monthly meeting. Ritson made his comments at last night's agenda meeting.
The property levy will remain at 3 mills. In the 2008 budget, a property owner with an assessed value of $25,000 is paying $75.
The township's annual budget is approximately $9 million.
Ritson said one reason the millage rate will remain the same is that the township has done "a good job" of maintaining its equipment, and that no large purchases are needed in 2009.
Residents living in the street light districts that are scattered throughout the township are assessed an annual fee for the cost of lighting and street light maintenance. Ritson did not indicate what the new fee structure would look like.
The increase in the lighting fee, he said, was the result of higher energy costs being charged by Allegheny Power.
Council may also decide Monday on the name of the agency to collect its Act 511 taxes, including the business privilege tax and per capita tax. Right now there are two contenders: Keystone Collections Group of Irwin and the Central Tax Bureau of Bridgeville.
Hempfield solicitor Les Mlakar told supervisors he had e-mailed them information on outdoor wood-burning furnaces.
Supervisor Doug Weimer said, "I think we should make sure we take a look at it."
Mlakar replied, "There are a lot of things you need to consider." He indicated supervisors should try to strike "a balance" between the needs of homeowners bothered by the smoke the furnaces sometime produce and wage earners who install furnaces in an attempt to save on energy costs.
"This will be an argument you will hear," Mlakar said.
According to several supervisors, the furnaces are popping up here and there in the township. Ritson said the problem is that "a couple of residents in suburban subdivisions are putting them in."
Supervisors discussed in general terms a possible economic stimulus package by Congress that would target public works projects. Ritson indicated the federal funds, if they come about, might be funneled through PennDOT or "municipal planning organizations."
