SHAMOKIN - City council adopted its 2013 tax levy Wednesday.
The total hasn't changed from 2012 - property owners will continue to pay $44.92 on each $1,000 of assessed value of their properties - but the breakdown has been altered.
Debt service millage has been lowered, a result of a refinancing plan adopted earlier this year, and transferred to bolster the recreation tax and a new shade tree tax.
The boost to the recreation tax will be used to fund repairs that pop up each summer at the swimming pool as well as fixes to the American Legion building, said Councilman William Strausser. It also will be used for playground repairs and perhaps partially towards a pending contract with Brush Valley Chamber of Commerce.
The city and chamber are working to reach agreement on a promotional contract in which the city would receive 300 hours of work for $8,000. The chamber would be required, among other tasks, to create a promotional campaign for the city and promote and organized events at Claude Kehler Community Park.
The shade tree tax, just 0.1 mills of the 44.918 mill total, will be used to help assist in the creation of community gardens in the city, Councilman William Strausser and Clerk Steve Bartos said Wednesday.
The breakdown is: 30 mills, general fund; 7.208 mills, parks/recreation; 6.860 mills, debt service; 0.750 mills, library fund; 0.100 mills, shade trees.
And while the general fund tax is often referred to as the "property tax," the entire levy is assessed on city properties.
For example, the owner of a property assessed at $20,000 would pay a total of $898.40 in taxes, $600 of which goes to the general fund.
In other business, the city voted to provide civil service testing materials to any city officer interested in testing to become a corporal, and also voted to end in January the one-hour closure the tax office had instituted for its lunch hour.