Property Tax Exemption

Excerpts from the Natural Lands Trust's application to the Berks County Assessment Office for real estate tax exemption for its Green Hills Preserve. (The Office granted the exemption.)

Excerpts from the Natural Lands Trust's application to the Northamption County Revenue Appeals Board for real estate tax exemption for its parcels that make up the Archibald Johnston Preserve.

The act standardizes the application of eligibility standards for charitable organization tax exemptions in Pennsylvania.

In this letter to the Centre County Board of Assessment Appeals, the ClearWater Conservancy makes its case for real estate tax exemption for one of its properties. It references the five point test of the Purely Public Charities Act; although the Act is no longer relevant due to the Mesivtah Eitz Chaim of Bobov court decision, the five point test is still relevant.

The MA Supreme Judicial Court's opinion and the appellant and amicus briefs in this Massachusetts case provide strong arguments for conservation as a charitable purpose and, therefore, tax exemption for conservation properties held by land trusts.

The manual is intended to provide legislators with observations on basic topics that are fundamental to, or frequently arise in connection with, municipal government in the Commonwealth; overview of some of the local government-related issues that may arise in constituent inquiries; links to various resources pertaining to municipal issues, contacts for government agencies and municipal associations, laws affecting municipalities, and relevant websites.

Preserves, parks, trails, and other conserved lands in Pennsylvania are not automatically exempted from real estate taxes. If tax exemption is desired for a parcel, the charitable organization or local government must apply for exemption for that specific parcel. Exemption for one parcel does not guarantee exemption for others owned by the same entity. WeConservePA guide. 10 pages.

Topics covered in this legal research paper include: Constitutional Authority for Sales Tax Exemption and Real Estate Tax Exemption, Statutory Definition for Purely Public Charity, Statutory Implementation for Sales Tax Exemptions for Purely Public Charities, Statutory Implementation for Real Estate Tax Exemptions for Purely Public Charities

The purpose of the Taxation Manual is to provide local government officials with a general guide to municipal tax revenue sources. The eighth edition, published in 2002, was updated with an addendum in 2004.