Allegheny County Council approves program aimed at tax relief for reassessments

Allegheny County Council approved the implementation of a program that would lessen the impact of longtime homeowners whose property taxes increase due to a countywide property tax reassessment.

While legislators say it would increase equity between new and longtime homeowners, others could be left with a bill they can't pay.

The LOOP program, approved by the council on Tuesday, would cap increases at 35% in the first year. It covers homeowners who have lived in their homes for 10 years and fall under 125% of the area's median income.

It could be an important tool used by longtime homeowners in communities like Lawrenceville, which has seen rapid gentrification. In 2004, the median price of a home in Lawrenceville was $35,000, according to a community planning document from 2006. Today, the median price of a home in Lower Lawrenceville sits at $475,000, according to Realtor.com.

It means it's possible for homes to sit on the same block, with some at last sale costing more than $1 million and others costing less than $100,000.

"It's an area in which the values of property have accelerated faster than most of the county," Allegheny County Councilman Dan Grzybek said. 

He fears it could come at a cost for the county's most vulnerable when countywide property taxes are next reassessed.

"I think a lot of people have this person on their mind, as you know an elderly person on a fixed income. They've lived in Lawrenceville for 30-plus years," Grzybek said. "Our last reassessment was back in 2012. The next reassessment, they're worried about really getting hammered on their taxes, maybe seeing a doubling in their taxes."

Gryzbek fears that, combined with annual tax increases, it could mean people have to move out of their longtime homes. He introduced the LOOP legislation that would tackle the issue not just in Lawrenceville, but across the county.

"LOOP serves to protect those folks and limit the amount that they could have their taxes increase," Grzybek said. 

He said the program would cover the individual whose taxes would be doubled. The taxable value of a home would still increase, just not as fast as it would otherwise.

"It allows for people to, ideally, not get forced out of their home as a result of an Allegheny County tax increase," Grzybek said.

While not explicitly saying she'd give a final OK to the measure, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato did show support for it in a statement provided to KDKA-TV. It said, in part:

"While we continue working toward a more equitable and predictable approach to property taxes at the Government Review Commission, policies that protect long-term owners are a critical part of the solution. I am grateful to Councilman Dan Grzybek and the County Council co-sponsors for their partnership and bipartisan leadership on LOOP, and I look forward to continued collaboration to make sure we are taking care of our neighbors while welcoming new investment across Allegheny County."

Grzybek said longtime homeowners should know that, unlike Lawrenceville, many communities won't see higher taxes as a result of property tax reassessments. Millage rates would actually have to increase as a result of the reassessment needing to be revenue-neutral for the county.

It's not clear when that reassessment would take place, only that it would happen eventually. The reassessment would help to address the fact that new homeowners pay much more in taxes than someone living right down the street in some communities.