There have been few opportunities for the public to learn about and discuss taxation and tax reform in Pennsylvania.  Most events over the past ten years have been a result of specific legislation passed by the General Assembly (e.g. Act 50 of 1998, or Act 1 of 2005/2006), so their focus has been primarily about that specific act and its implications. 

The Local Tax Forums are intended to provide an opportunity for Pennsylvania citizens to have an open dialogue about local taxes, including how they could be made fairer. The Tax Forums are designed to increase public knowledge about local taxes, help people understand others’ perspectives better, and to encourage participants to share their perspectives on local taxation and tax fairness with legislators and others.

The forums are participatory and objective- not advocating for a specific local tax reform solution. Participation is open to all, provided they're willing to be civil, to listen openly to others opinions, and actively share their own thoughts.

The typical Local Tax Forum agenda is:

7:00 Introduction to the evening

7:10 How do Pennsylvania local taxes measure up? (a basic overview of local taxation in Pennsylvania)

7:30 Panel of 3 Local Government Officials (each talking for 5 minutes, followed by questions & answers from the audience)

8:00 Small group discussion (focused on participants' thoughts about tax fairness, the pros and cons of different local taxes, and what they think needs to be done to make taxes fairer)

8:30 Report out from Small Groups

8:50 Your next steps?

9:00 Adjourn