Carbon County Could Face 58% Tax Hike

Jim Thorpe, Carbon County - People living in Carbon County should prepare for the worst financial scenario.  If the proposed budget goes through as is, Carbon County will be facing a 58 percent tax increase, the first tax increase in nearly a decade.

Matthew pizza says he moved to Jim Thorpe from New Jersey to escape high taxes but now he says they seem to follow him wherever he goes, "taxes going up 50 percent!  That's a substantial increase."

And next door at Mulligan's Unique Toys and Gifts, shop keeper Jeanne Gomez had the same reaction, "Like oh my god.  No.  This is really going to hurt a lot of people."

The people of Carbon County could face a 58 percent tax hike come the New Year if another solution is not found in the next 15 days.  County leaders say their 44 million dollar budget for 2013 has a 6 million dollar deficit and the only way to balance the budget is to raise taxes.

Commissioner Wayne Nothstein voted for the tax hike.  He says it was a difficult decision considering his own family will be affected but with continually dropping revenues and always increasing expenses, it was the only way out of the red, "My mother is 80 years old she is on a fixed income.  She lives in a half a double she can't afford it.  I'm doing this not only to my mother to my other relatives."

But Commissioner William O'Gurek disagrees, "A four mill increase to tax payers who are struggling now in the worst economic period of our lifetime, it's not acceptable."

County leaders say they are looking at other ways of saving money like shutting down the solid waste department and the county animal shelter as well as potential layoffs.

Pizza says he hopes they come up with a better solution than drastically raising taxes or Jim Thorpe won't remain the tourism hot spot that it is, "You're chasing out shops.  You're chasing out tourism.  You really diminish a beautiful town that's growing."

Commissioners will vote on the final budget on December 20th.