Proposed 2023 Penn Township budget focuses on capital projects

Penn Township commissioners will vote on a proposed 2023 budget Dec. 21 that includes a host of capital improvement construction projects.

The $10.3 million spending plan does not raise any taxes or cut any services, according to township finance director Colleen Gain.

Most notable in the budget, Gain said, are the larger-scale capital projects the township plans, including several stormwater projects and a restructuring of Pleasant Valley Road.

During a meeting this week, the board approved a resolution to apply for two state grants for the Willows and Penntowne stormwater projects, which would cover about $867,000 and $1.6 million respectively.

Total project costs are estimated at $1.3 million for the Willows project and $2.4 million for the Penntowne project.

“We did do a borrowing so that we can get some of those capital projects tackled in the next year,” said Gain, describing the projects as a main focus. “We’re hoping to be able to use some of those grant funds and make our dollars that we have borrowed and our (American Rescue Plan Act) funds that we still have go a little bit further.”

The township still has about $2 million in ARPA funds, which it can use until 2024.

“We haven’t used any of them yet, but this large list of capital projects that we want to work on is a perfect place to start using them,” she said.

A few other changes to the budget will come in the form of rising insurance costs, Gain said. Employee health insurance rates will increase slightly by 11% for medical, but will remain the same for dental and vision. Workers’ compensation rates will increase by 8% and property and liability insurance will increase by 3.6%.

The Public Works department budget accounts for the possible hiring of a new employee, though the department will reevaluate a few months into the year whether a new employee is needed before making the decision to hire someone.