<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2ocErk_1GpCe5kr00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2ocErk_1GpCe5kr00" width="1536" height="806" ></figure>This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project.Jonestown Borough plans to maintain real estate taxes at 1.8 mills alongside a total $23 increase in flat taxes for property owners in 2027. Jonestown Borough Council unanimously agreed to advertise an $8 increase to the fire hydrant rental tax and a $15 increase to the street light tax at its monthly meeting Wednesday, Nov. 4. Neither tax has been raised since they were implemented in 2009 and, council president Daniel Shuman said, neither raises enough money to pay for their respective maintenance costs.Council will vote on the increases, of $15 to $23 per property for the fire hydrant tax and $15 to $30 for the street light tax, at its next regular meeting Dec. 1. Council also reviewed the draft budget, with the local real estate tax planned to remain at 1.8 mills.Fire hydrants in the borough are inspected and maintained by the City of Lebanon Authority, which sends the borough invoices for its services. Shuman said he had not heard back from the authority after requesting details on inspection dates and maintenance performed, noting that he lives near a fire hydrant and does not recall seeing it tested.Council vice president pro tem Madisyn Breiner added that the authority’s invoices are not as detailed as those given for other services received by the borough. Over the summer, Breiner took on extra work overseeing borough operations and finances after the borough secretary/treasurer resigned. Breiner was also involved in budget development.Council directed solicitor Colleen Gallo to send a formal letter to the water authority requesting maintenance and inspection logs.Shuman explained over email that the borough was billed $13,000 for fire hydrant maintenance in 2026 and the proposed increase will nearly cover that amount. He said electricity costs from MetEd for streetlights are expected to exceed $32,000 and “the proposed increase will not come close to covering that amount, but we did not feel it appropriate to try to make up the shortfall all at once.” He added that the borough is looking into ways to reduce the expense.The draft budget for 2027, slated for approval in December, includes $547,467 in expenses, around a $7,500 increase from last year, and $533,586 in revenues, said Shuman. He said the $13,881 shortfall is not expected to be an issue as the borough will roll over funds from this year.“We haven’t spent a lot of money this year, we have a good deal in our general fund account, so we’re gonna be fine,” he said.The borough receives police services from Cleona Borough Police Department, and Shuman said the $20,000 budgeted for police services in 2026 was “blown way out of the water” with more officer hours than expected. The 2027 budget increases this line item to $45,000, though Shuman added that it is council’s choice whether to use that many hours.The borough also budgeted $30,000 for engineering fees, though engineer Stacy Longnecker said the borough is unlikely to spend that much. The budget includes a $12,500 donation to Northern Lebanon Fire and Emergency Services, though the company requested an increase to $15,000.Shuman said the 2027 budget is intended to provide more detail about budgeted costs, in part to eliminate unnecessary costs.Mayor Jeffrey Schott praised council for efforts to cut costs in the new budget, citing Breiner’s recent discovery and elimination of multiple redundant or unused phone services the borough was paying for up until this year. The borough also removed a groundskeeper position and changed the secretary/treasurer position from full-time to part-time.“About a year ago this week, a slate of candidates got elected with three campaign promises,” said Schott, listing those promises as transparency to the public, reining in borough finances, and repealing the borough adoption of the International Property Maintenance Code (IPMC). “This budget really reflects a delivery on those first two items. The prior council suffered from a combination of runaway spending without council being fully informed and also a lack of communication which precluded discussion and cautions that could’ve come up regarding that spending.”Schott added that he is working toward repealing the IPMC by compiling a list of the most common complaints and drafting adjustments to existing borough code to allow enforcement. The IPMC was adopted to allow the borough to cite properties with dangerous or disruptive conditions, he said, but the international code is “incredibly over-inclusive and over-burdensome” due to the large number of items regulated.He added that the borough’s code enforcement officer is willing to continue working for the borough if the IPMC is repealed.In other news, council:<ul><li>Unanimously approved the replacement of pavilion kitchen flooring over the winter for $919.09 from the parks and recreation account, with costs not to exceed $1,100.</li><li>Unanimously approved a Greenwaste area drainage project establishing a catch basin for $898.15.</li><li>Unanimously approved a $250 annual donation to Matthews Public Library. Schott added that he is a parent of homeschoolers and he is very impressed by the services now offered by the library.</li><li>Unanimously agreed to apply the borough’s holiday policy to the borough administrator (the treasurer/secretary), as the policy previously only applied to full-time employees and the position is now part-time.</li><li>Unanimously agreed to reappoint Paul Bird as the borough’s representative to the Greater Lebanon Refuse Authority.</li><li>Heard that the borough obtained a JBT Business Plus account for $20 per month to allow Gift CPAs, which is temporarily overseeing finances, to have read-only access to borough bank accounts. </li><li>Held an executive session on potential litigation and part-time personnel assistance.</li></ul>Jonestown council will hold its next regular meeting Dec. 1 at 6:30 p.m. Meetings are held at the borough building at 295 S. Mill St.Questions about this story? Suggestions for a future LebTown article? Reach our newsroom using this contact form and we’ll do our best to get back to you.<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0Heq3h_1GpCe5kr00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0Heq3h_1GpCe5kr00" width="1200" height="798" ></figure>Be part of Lebanon County’s story.Cancel anytime.<ul><li>Still no paywall!</li><li>Fewer ads</li><li>Exclusive events and emails</li></ul>Join the 1,100+ readers who support our work as membersAlready a member? Log in here to hide these messagesFree local news isn’t cheap. If you value the coverage LebTown provides, help us make it sustainable. You can unlock more reporting for the community by joining as a monthly or annual member, or supporting our work with a one-time contribution. Cancel anytime.</div></body>

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This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project. Jonestown Borough plans to maintain real estate taxes at 1.8 mills alongside a total $23 increase in flat taxes for property owners in 2027. Jonestown Borough Council unanimously agreed to advertise an $8 increase to...

Jonestown floats fire hydrant, street light tax increases

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This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project. Jonestown Borough plans to maintain real estate taxes at 1.8 mills

Jonestown floats fire hydrant, street light tax increases

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