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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. David Kessler |
  
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Kessler bills to save taxpayers money signed into law
HARRISBURG, July 16 – Two bills that state Rep. David Kessler introduced to save taxpayers money have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate and have been signed into law.
"A 2006 decision by the state Supreme Court threatened to impose an unlimited drain on taxpayers," Kessler said. "The court effectively ended the time limit for challenging local zoning ordinances, so townships and boroughs and their residents face the threat of legal expenses, typically well in excess of $25,000, to defend their zoning laws -- even when the municipalities have followed the letter of the law and the challenges are frivolous. That money would be coming out of people’s property taxes.
"Unless we changed the law, the burdens imposed on taxpayers by the court decision could have been overwhelming," Kessler said. "The Supreme Court had tilted the playing field heavily in favor of companies that can finance long, drawn-out lawsuits and I worked to correct that. Under the court's ruling, local ordinances that citizens have followed for five or 15 years could have been tossed out, not because of the zoning, but because of technicalities of procedure."
The organization PennEnvironment called Kessler's legislation "a tool for protecting threatened open spaces and family farms, and promoting smart, local land use decisions."
Kessler’s legislation (H.B.s 1329 and 1330, now Acts 39 and 40 of 2008) was prompted by a quarry business in Berks County winning its legal challenge against a long-standing township zoning ordinance based on an allegation of a procedural defect in its enactment. The state Supreme Court ruled in 2006 that such a challenge to an ordinance can be brought at any time. Procedural defects can include such minor omissions as posting public notice signs every 310 feet instead of every 300 feet.
The new laws will make it extremely difficult for parties bringing a challenge two years or more after adoption of an ordinance to prove that a township or borough failed to comply strictly with statutory procedural requirements.
"In Harrisburg, I am able to put my 15 years of local government experience to use for taxpayers in Berks County and across the state," Kessler said. "By remaining a township supervisor, I see firsthand what is needed to help local governments throughout my district and throughout Pennsylvania."
Kessler has served on the Oley Township Board of Supervisors since 1994 and also served on the township planning commission for 15 years. After being sworn in as state representative in January, Kessler has continued to serve as a township supervisor without accepting a salary for the township position. He serves on the House Finance, Agriculture, Local Government, and Aging and Older Adult Services committees.
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