October 25, 2006
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
Although the court document is still missing at least one signature, the Wayne County Board of Assessment and Revision of Taxes has reached a settlement with Waymart Wind Farm L.P. over the farm’s appeal of the county’s 2006 property assessment.
Under the settlement agreement, the wind farm will make a payment in lieu of property taxes, which the energy company was contending it did not have to pay, according to Wayne County Commissioner Anthony V. Mr. Herzog. The money will be shared among the taxing bodies involved.
There are 43 wind mills in the county; 39 in the Western Wayne School District and four in the Forest City Regional School District. Some are in Clinton Township and some in Canaan Township.
Rose Emmett, business manager for Western Wayne, said the board has a meeting tonight at 6 to vote on the matter. According to Ms. Emmett, she and Superintendent Andrew Falonk will recommend the board approve the settlement.
Robert I. Scanlan, an attorney named for Waymart Wind Farm, declined to comment on the agreement until all parties have signed it.
The wind farm is a subsidiary of FPL Energy, based in Juno Beach, Fla.
Efforts to contact a Wilkes-Barre attorney for the company and the Forest City Regional School District solicitor were unsuccessful Tuesday.
The county assessed each wind mill site – which equals one acre – at $98,000. The property tax is determined by multiplying $98,000 by the millage, which is 2.786 mills for the county; 12.517 mills for the Western Wayne and 12.2 mills for Forest City Regional. That number is then multiplied by the number of windmills located in the county or district.
Including the county, Canaan and Clinton townships and the two school districts, total revenue from the windmills in 2006 is $66,244. With the agreement, the taxing bodies are looking at up to $47,148 more this year, Mr. Herzog said.
According to the county, it will receive $20,096; Western Wayne, $81,889; Forest City, $8,186; Clinton Township, $1,543; and Canaan Township; $1,677.
A nonjury trail was scheduled Nov. 6 for the civil case.
Mr. Herzog said the involved taxing bodies could be looking at a total of $2.2 million in revenue from the wind farm, based on the farm lasting 20 to 25 years.
By Megan Reiter, Staff Writer
Contact the writer: mreiter@timesshamrock.com
URL to article: https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2006/10/25/wind-farm-will-make-payment-instead-of-pay-taxes/