The constitutional amendment to Article VIII of the PA Constitution that Pennsylvania voters passed November 7, 2017 gives the General Assembly the authority to pass a law authorizing local governments to exclude up to the full value of residents’ homes that they own from taxation. However, the law in and of itself does not give taxpayers any such relief and only provides the possibility of legislative action that could eventually lead to reductions in the use of property taxes to fund education. It is also important to note that, should property taxes could be reduced through legislative action, the amendment does not provide a means for making up for any such cuts.

Presently, local governments, under the homestead exclusion, have  the ability to exclude up to half the median value of homes in their area from taxation. Billions of dollars are collected each year to help fund public schools in the Commonwealth.

In essence, legislators can now, if they so desire, enact legislation that would provide additional options for property tax relief for residential property owners. However, the result of such would probably entail shifts in other tax and revenue sources to help fund the exclusions and replace the funding needed to support education.