Earned Income Tax Considered By Falls Township For 2023

FALLS TOWNSHIP, PA —Falls Township is one of the few municipalities in Bucks County without an Earned Income Tax. But that status may be ending soon.

On Monday night, Falls Township Supervisors voted 3-2 to authorize the advertisement of the proposed EIT for 2023. Supervisors will consider adopting the EIT at its Dec. 19 meeting.

As Falls Township considers the EIT, a study has found that township residents are paying roughly $3.5 million in said taxes to other taxing authorities, i.e., the municipality where they work.

Most people who work in Pennsylvania pay a 1-percent earned income tax. Many are not aware the tax is deducted from their paychecks.

If the EIT is added, it would only change where the tax is paid by residents, not how much. Instead of taxes being paid to another town, the EIT would go to Falls Township.

The only exception is for people who work in Philadelphia where the EIT would continue.

During Monday night's vote, supervisors Erin Mullen and Brian Galloway voted against the measure.

Supervisors Chairman Jeff Dence said, if approved, the EIT would generate about $7 million “on the conservative side.”

He said the tax would not impact senior citizens, those who are not working. Anyone who lives in Falls Township and earns more than $8,000 a year would pay the EIT.

For years, some residents have urged the board to institute the tax.

The township’s 2023 preliminary budget projects $5.25 million in revenue generated from the EIT, which would reduce the township’s reliance on landfill host community fees to $10.3 million.

Considering the EIT is a means for Falls to wean off the more than $1 million per month financial windfall that has been the landfill.

“This township has relied on a landfill as long as I’ve lived here and much longer than that,” Dence said. “There is an end in sight for the landfill.”

As a result, Dence said the EIT is a first step in securing the financial future for Falls once the landfill closes in several years.

Supervisors Vice Chairman Jeff Boraski called the EIT “a tough decision” and noted that he is paying a 1 percent EIT to Huntingdon Valley.

“It’s the future of the township,” Boraski said. “We’re losing $3.5 million.”

Supervisor John Palmer voted in favor of advertising the EIT but said he may not be on board with
instituting the tax.

“I know a ton of people that don’t pay any right now,” he said. “We might have to go back to the budget and make some hard decisions.”