A Democratic state lawmaker from Lancaster County wants to impose a tax on those living in municipalities that are serviced full- and part-time by the state police.

If passed, such a tax would impact roughly 25 municipalities in Luzerne County.

The sponsor, Rep. Mike Sturla, D-Lancaster, said his bill would generate approximately $450 million in three years.

Money would be allocated to pay for state police operations, more state troopers, maintain or replace roads and bridges and encourage municipalities to engage in cooperative police services, according to Sturla’s bill.

“My legislation is about fairness and equity because it is obvious there is a serious inequity in how we fund police services in our state,” Sturla said. “All residents of Pennsylvania are taxed for state police patrol services, but only 20 percent of the state population utilizes these services. Approximately 72 percent of the state’s population does not solely rely on state police patrol services, and yet they pay an additional $100 to $400 per capital annually for their own local police.”

On the face of it, Sturla’s tax appears to be just another nuisance tax.

Investigate further and the measure seems fair.

Why do I pay my share of taxes to help fund the small police department in my tiny town when those living in the townships and boroughs without police departments don’t?

I am also paying to the City of Wilkes-Barre the annual $52 municipality services tax that is supposed to help pay for police and fire protection. Thousands of others who work in the city do the same.

Under Sturla’s bill, every municipality that relies solely on the state police would be required to pay an annual per capita fee of $156. It also requires municipalities that opt for some part-time local patrol services to pay an annual per capital fee of $52.

Municipalities will have an “opt-out” provision that would allow those towns to pay on a per-incident basis.

Bill makes noise in Harrisburg

Sturla’s measure comes with consequences.

If municipalities fail to pay the fee, they forfeit all payments to be received from the state and won’t receive any state police patrol services.

Sturla’s bill is making some noise in Harrisburg.

It has 51 co-sponsors, including local state representatives Mike Carroll, D-Avoca; Phyllis Mundy, D-Kingston; and Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, as of Thursday.

The bill narrowly passed the State Government Committee on Wednesday.

Other measures to impose state police patrol taxes on municipalities have died in previous legislative sessions.

Unlike municipal police departments, state police across the nation were created to deal with the growing incidents of crime in suburban and rural areas.

In Pennsylvania, the state police were legislatively fashioned in 1905 to keep peace and order in the aftermath of a violent coal strike. It certainly has evolved during the last 104 years from 228 troopers in the first year to more than 4,500 troopers today.

I, for one, believe there are too many taxes by too many governments.

But Sturla’s measure isn’t a nuisance tax, as it would seem.

About the Author

Ed Lewis covers police news for the Times Leader. Reach him at elewis@timesleader.com.

Ed Lewis covers police for The Times Leader. A graduate of Hanover Area, he earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from King’s College where he also minored in political science. He interned for Congressman Paul E. Kanjorski in Washington, D.C., while in college, and formerly was an assignment editor and managing editor before finding his niche covering the very busy police beat. His hobbies include lifting weights, kickboxing, reading, carpentry, gardening, model trains and sports, especially football.

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