Lancaster County Tax
Reassessment
(Continued from Pago A 1)
ordered fix, others contend that
fast urban sprawl coming in the
wake of the loss of a strong manu
facturing and industrial base have
combined to aggravate die delay.
Nevertheless, experts on Tues
day said that Lancaster County
actually had one of the better rat
ings of disparity in tax assessments
at 20 percent. That means that on
Lancaster Cattle
The Lancaster County Cattle
Feeder’s Day is scheduled for
Tuesday, Jan. 31, at the Farm and
Home Center in Lancaster. The
theme for this year’s event is
“Addressing Beef Industry Issues.”
Featured this year will be a
panel discussion, entitled “Zero
Tolerance - Insights and Obsta
cles”, moderated by Penn State
Cooperative Extension Red Meats
Specialist Dr. Bill Henning. This
important meat industry issue
focuses on the reduction of bacter
ial contamination in our meat sup
ply.
“Zero Tolerance,” a topic of
concern for cattle feeders, packers,
suppliers, and consumers, will be'
addressed by a panel of industry
wide representatives. Sharing their
expertise will be K. T. Miller,
director of consumer affairs for
Monfort at Greeley, Colo.; Billy
Lloyd, National Cattleman’s Asso
ciation, Englewood, Colo.; Myron
Stcltzfus, Stoltzfus Meats, Inter
course, Pa.; and Walter Olsted,
Food Safety and Inspection Ser
vice, USDA, Philadelphia.
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average, most properties in the
county were taxed on an assessed
real estate value that was within 20
percent, above or below, the value
now considered correct.
The reassessment process began
almost two years ago with an infor
mational meeting held by the Lan
caster County Farm Bureau at the
county Farm and Home Center to
help people understand the pro
cess. why it was being undertaken.
Feeder’s Day Set
Research scientist Dr. Frances
Fluharty of the Ohio State Univer
sity will present “Ration Formula
tion for Incoming Cattle”: based
on research conducted at the Ohio
Agricultural Research and Devel
opment Center Feedlot at Wooster.
Penn State Extension Veterinarian
Dr. Tom Drake will present “Prop
er Handling of Cattle Vaccines” to
keep producers updated on Beef
Quality Assurance practices.
Always a highlight of Cattle
Feeders Day, the “Cattle and Feed
Outlook” will be presented by H.
Louis Moore, Penn State extension
economist, and Dave Ivan, Penn
sylvania Beef Council executive
director, will highlight the Coun
cil’s activities and explain the
“Beef Industry Long-Range Plan.”
The event will begin at 8:30
a.tn. with exhibit visitation and the
program starts promptly at 9:30
a.m. This meeting conducted by
the Penn State Cooperative Exten
sion concludes at 3 p.m. with a
question and answer session. For
additional information, call Chester
D. Hughes, (717) 394-6851.
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and what options were available
under the state’s “Clean and Green
Act,” otherwise known as Act 319.
TTic current round of meetings
has been undertaken because land
owners should be receiving infor
mation from the county tax office
on the reassessed value of their
property.
What landowners are being
asked to do first is to look at the
assessed value and consider
whether it reasonably reflects the
market value of the property.
If it does not, or if there are any
questions, then they should contact
the county tax assessment office,
headed by Leo Gassier.
Farm Bureau’s role in meeting,
lead locally by county president
Jane Balmer, was to provide infor
mation specifically for farmers
who may find it very well in the
interest to take advantage of the
slate’s Clean and Green Act
The Clean and Green program is
unique in that it actually required a
change in the state’s constitution.
Previously, the constitution held
that all were to be taxed on the
same basis.
However, in an effort to protect
agriculture and open spaces, politi
cal leaders pushed to change the
way farmland and forest land had
to be taxed.
Instead of taxing these lands
Vermont Castings
More I han 1 leal. Warmth.
in blocks of 10 acres tv more, or
providing $2,000 or more worth of
agricultural commodities per
year on the basis of the maiket
value t the Clean and Green Act
requires local taxing authorities to
tax them based on the use-value of
the property.
This preferential taxing struc
ture does not apply to buildings,
just to land.
While this may eventually be
cause for some disagreements,
landowners were informed Tues
day that their farmhouses and farm
buildings are going to be assessed
at market value.
It was reported Tuesday that
those who wish to enter the Clean
and Green program must be will
ing to be committed to continuing
their current land practices. If
week is done to change the land
protected under Clean and Green,
the landowner is liable to pay up to
seven-years worth of back taxes.
Those back taxes would be cal
culated based on the difference
between what was paid, and what
would have been paid if the land
were taxed based on market value.
If the land is sold and the new
owner changes die use of the land,
then that owner is liable to pay the
county up to seven-year’s worth of
back taxes.
Furthermore, if a determination
is made that back taxes are owed,
the county immediately puts a lien
on the property the same as if
taxes were delinquent
For those who have sold deve
lopment rights, or whose property
has a conservation easement pro
tection, or some other form of deed
restriction preventing develop
ment officials said it would
behoove the owners to immediate
ly start the paperwork for Clean
and Green.
If those properties are not
entered into the Clean and Green
program, then the county will tax
them based on their market value.
It was reported by assessment
experts Tuesday that farmland in
Lancaster County that has sold its
development rights has a current
market value of only $5OO per acre
less than land with development
rights.
In other words, even with deve
lopment rights sold, properties tax
es will go up (it is expected signif
icantly in some cases). The only
way to keep those taxes down is to
enter the Clean and Green
program.
The Pennsylvania Farm Bureau
has retained the services of an
expert on tax assessments and
Clean and Green.
The county tax reas
sessment program has
involved more than
driving around and
checking current real
estate prices. In fact, it
was reported that the
entire county is fairly
well computerized, as
well as are its soil types.
It has been photo
graphed and an esti
mated 163,000 proper
ties had to be assessed.
The new program is
to become effective Jan.
1. 1996.
For more informa
tion, contact the Auto
mated Valuation Ser
vices in the Lancaster
County Courthouse at
(717) 390-2300.
For members of the
Farm Bureau (all far
mers), for more infor
mation, contact Earl
Newcomer, county
Farm Bureau board
member, at (717)
872-2646; or Jane Bal
mer, county Farm
Bureau president, at
(717) 653-5916.
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