The per capita tax, $10 per resident per year, was adopted about 30 years ago, McAdams said. Octorara Area School District is one of seven school districts in Chester County that collects the per capita, or head, tax. He said the tax was time-consuming for the district and a "nuisance" to the taxpayer.
"For 80 percent to 90 percent (of district taxpayers) there would be little change (in tax burden) one way or the other," McAdams said. "The 100 largest taxpayers would pay more taxes."
McAdams said one mill of property tax generated $32,600 in revenue for the district. The head tax generated $71,700 plus $13,200 in delinquent taxes in 1985. A 2.6-mill increase in real estate taxes would offset the head tax and reduce the cost of collecting taxes by more than $1,000 a year.
According to the chart presented by McAdams, the average household, with an annual real estate tax of $700 and 1.5 residents, would pay $1 less each year to the district. An Amish farm household with two adults and one child, which paid $2,047 in 1986 real estate taxes, would pay $11 more if real estate taxes were increased 2.6 percent and the head tax dropped.
A married farmer with 196 acres and no children paid $9,550 in 1986 real estate taxes. His taxes would increase $171.
Commercial property owners, who pay no head tax on commercial property, would notice the greatest increase, according to the chart. The two largest industries in the district each paid more that $100,000 in real estate taxes this year. The shift away from the head tax would cost them more than $2,600 in additional real estate taxes.
From a school district perspective, there is an advantage to shifting from the per capita tax to higher real estate taxes, McAdams said.
