For the first time in years, Harrisburg approved a rate increase that will send hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional funding to rural communities. There is more than three million acres of state-owned park, forest and game lands throughout Pennsylvania. Because these areas are tax-exempt, the state government sends money to local governments and school districts within these state-owned boundaries. Officials say this increase should help keep rural districts from needing to levy higher property taxes, and is necessary when rural communities see a decline in their population.
