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<p>For more than a decade, Luzerne County&#8217;s outside financial consultant has been advising the county to push for more voluntary payments from tax-exempt colleges, medical facilities and organizations, but the proposal never got off the ground.</p><p>The Harrisburg-based Public Financial Management included the recommendation to pursue such payments in lieu of taxes, known as PILOTs, in its financial recovery plans since 2004, including a five-year plan released last month.</p><p>County Councilman James Bobeck raised the issue during last week&#8217;s council meeting and urged the administration to act, saying the new plan estimates the county could increase revenue $500,000 over five years by phasing in payments equal to 10 percent of current tax rates from the top tax-exempt colleges and medical-related facilities.</p><p>Tax-exempt entities don&#8217;t pay real estate taxes but rely on county services, including 911, emergency management, the court criminal justice system and human services, Bobeck said.</p><p>Some counties have coaxed PILOTs from tax-exempt entities by mailing them payment requests containing cost breakdowns of the county services benefiting their organizations, he said.</p><p>As of January, there were 8,446 tax-exempt parcels with a total assessed value of $2.7 billion in the county, the recovery plan said.</p><p>The county receives about $146,000 in voluntary payments from tax-exempt entities annually, the plan said.</p><p>Another $653,360 from the Mohegan Sun Pocono casino in Plains Township has been lumped into the PILOT category in county records, but the casino is taxable and was paying a set amount due to a court-ordered assessment appeal agreement that expires the end of this year.</p><p>The recovery plan advises the county to develop a &#8220;more robust and structured&#8221; program to secure payments from tax-exempts.</p><p>Some governments have set up a panel of non-profit representatives to come up with a formula to calculate payments that weighs both the value of county services and the charitable services provided by the tax-exempts, the plan said. The panel also could help decide which tax-exempts should participate, it said.</p><p>Other counties primarily targeted the largest tax-exempt institutions, the plan said.</p><p>Counties with the most success have a &#8220;high level of personal engagement&#8221; by government leaders, such as the county manager and the council chair, it said.</p><p>&#8220;Leaders of tax-exempt institutions will expect to interact with leaders at this level if they are to persuade their own governing boards to participate,&#8221; the study said.</p><p>Wilkes-Barre has a &#8220;strong&#8221; PILOT program, the plan said. According to city records, the city budgeted $448,546 in payments in lieu of taxes this year from more than 14 tax-exempts, including some churches.</p><p>The county should coordinate its program with the city and other municipal governments and school districts so tax-exempts aren&#8217;t hit with multiple requests from various levels of government, the plan said. Municipalities have traditionally received more payments from tax-exempts because they provide more &#8220;direct&#8221; services, such as police protection, it said.</p><p>County Manager Robert Lawton told Bobeck he believes the &#8220;targeted approach&#8221; is the most effective.</p><p>&#8220;If you go as a government with the tin cup route to say, &#8216;Oh please won&#8217;t you throw us a PILOT payment,&#8217; that&#8217;s easy to ignore,&#8221; Lawton said.</p><p>Lawton said he will direct county division heads to start working on a plan.</p><p>The administration also will work to implement other consultant recommendations, although he said it is &#8220;premature&#8221; for the council to incorporate projected savings into the proposed budget. Council members are trying to avoid a proposed 8-percent tax hike.</p><p>The recovery plan also advises the county to complete a status review of all tax-exempts verifying their eligibility to remain off the tax rolls. Other counties have revoked tax-exempt status for some entities after similar reviews because they did not provide justification.</p><p>The Mohegan Sun valuation also was discussed at last week&#8217;s meeting. Lawton said the county hired San Francisco-based HVS Gaming to come up with a recommended assessment for the casino. The company has proven experience valuing gaming facilities throughout the world, including three appraisals of Pennsylvania casinos completed in recent years for county assessment offices, officials said.</p><p>Mohegan Sun &#8217;s current tax payment &#8212;a combined $2.9 million to the school, county and township &#8212; is not tied to a specific assessment, but a property charged that amount of taxes would be valued around $125 million.</p><p>The breakdown of the $2.9 million payment: Wilkes-Barre Area School District, $2.01 million; county, $653,360; and township, $261,460.</p><p>Lawton said he expects the new assessment will increase the county&#8217;s receipt at least enough to cover the $92,000 contract with HVS Gaming. He does not predict a &#8220;windfall&#8221; generating an additional $1 million.</p><p>&#8220;The PILOT payment was pretty close, and this will take into account any new improvements,&#8221; Lawton said.</p><p>County Councilman Stephen A. Urban disagreed with the forecast, saying the county should receive a &#8220;pretty hefty increase&#8221; because the original payment was calculated before the addition of a hotel/convention center and other amenities.</p><p>Listed under Connecticut-based Downs Racing LP, the Mohegan Sun complex is 264 acres. The owner will receive a change of assessment notice stating the new value and have the right to file an appeal.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Bobeck </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/web1_bobeck.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bobeck </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Jennifer Learn-Andes</p><p>jandes@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Luzerne County to pursue voluntary payments from tax-exempts