2010: Time To Be Counted

Submitted by State Senator Michael O'Pake

It’s that’s time, once again, to be counted – that “once every 10 year” count of everybody in the United States of America. The 2010 U.S. Census swings into full gear this month as Census questionnaires arrive in mailboxes throughout Berks County and across the nation.

A requirement of the United States Constitution, citizen participation by completing and mailing back the Census questionnaire in the prepaid envelope provided on April 1 – National Census Day – or as soon as possible thereafter – is critically important for Berks County, our local communities, and our citizens.

Here’s why: Each year, the federal government allocates over $400 billion to states and communities based, in part, on Census data. If everybody in Berks County is not counted, we will lose our fair share of federal funds that – in the wake of the national economic recession – our communities desperately need.

According to officials at the Pennsylvania State Data Center in Harrisburg, Berks County and its local communities could lose as much as $1,000 per year – or as much as $10,000 over the next decade – for each person not counted. In addition, the Census data is used to determine legislative and congressional district boundaries to help ensure the “one person, one vote” principal that legislative and congressional districts contain, as nearly as possible, an equal number of people.

ABLE-BODIED RETIREES WELCOME TO APPLY FOR CENSUS JOBS

For those households that don’t return a completed Census questionnaire, meanwhile, it will be the job of Census takers to visit those households to make sure everybody is counted. It’s a task that’s expected to create as many as 600 good-paying, temporary and part-time Census jobs for interested citizens in Berks County.

This could be a great opportunity for able-bodied retirees who want to make a little extra money – and who want to help with this important task of making sure everybody in their neighborhood and community is counted. Census takers are to be paid $13.25 an hour, for up to 10 weeks of part-time work, and will be reimbursed for authorized work-related expenses such as mileage.

To find out more about Census jobs that may be available in your area, and how to apply, simply call the Census Bureau’s toll-free job line at 1-866-861-2010.

For jobs that are available in your community, you will be directed to one of more than two dozen Census job application and testing locations that have been established in Berks County.

You can also find out more about these jobs and the 2010 Census in general by visiting the links I’ve established on my website at http://www.senator-opake.com/.

And, as always, if I can be of further assistance on any state-related matter, please don’t hesitate to contact my district office at 610-929-2151. We’re at your service and we’re always here to help.

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Table Games Law Will Create Jobs, Grow Economy and Provide Property Tax Relief

Submitted by State Rep. Dante Santoni

Reducing the burden of property taxes for Pennsylvania senior citizens is one of my top priorities as a state representative. Another is to support fiscal policies that promote economic recovery in the state.

It's why in January we passed a new law that legalized table games at Pennsylvania's already successful slots casinos. Make no mistake – this law was necessary to fill a massive budget hole without raising taxes and to help jumpstart our economy.

The national unemployment rate sits at 10 percent, while Pennsylvania’s jobless rate is at 8.9 percent. Fewer people working means fewer state tax dollars available for school funding, road and bridge repairs, and aid to seniors and disabled.

With a deficit of more than $3.2 billion for fiscal year 2009-10, and a similar deficit predicted for 2010-11, the need to have the state's share of table game revenue go into the General Fund to finalize state budget funding commitments was paramount. Without the money the state expects to receive through table games, your property taxes would have gone up.

It’s about more than just dollars and cents, though.

This new law will help create upward of 6,000 casino jobs, not to mention the thousands of construction jobs that are likely to be created from spin-off hotel, restaurant and retail development near the casinos. This law will spur millions of dollars of investment into the local economy, creating more jobs and providing more resources to local communities.

The table games law also provides for property tax relief in future years.

While the tax revenue from table games will go directly into the state’s General Fund budget to help us through these tight fiscal times, we also included a provision that will send future revenue from table games directly to the state’s Property Tax Relief Fund once the Rainy Day Fund is restored.

Some critics say we haven’t seen much property tax relief from gaming in Pennsylvania. But thousands of Pennsylvania senior citizens have seen their property tax bills eliminated thanks to slots revenues combined with refunds from the lottery funded Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program.

The nine operating slots parlors have generated over $3 billion in state revenue so far, two-thirds of which has been returned to homeowners in the form of property tax relief.

There are still a handful of casinos that haven’t yet come online – two of them in Pennsylvania’s largest city, Philadelphia. Once all of the casinos are up and running – with a full array of table games – property tax relief will only improve.

As chairman of the House Gaming Oversight Committee, I am responsible for making decisions that help the people I represent, specifically, and Pennsylvanians as a whole, when it comes to expanded gaming in the state. The experiences I have had in dealing with our state’s gaming industry have affirmed that, in approving table games, we made the best choice for Pennsylvania.

As always, if I can be of assistance with any state-related matter, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Rep. Santoni represents the 126th Legislative District in Berks County. His office is located at 4933 Kutztown Road, Temple. The phone number is 610-921-8921.

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LIHEAP grants help seniors, families during winter months

Submitted by State Rep. Tom Caltagirone

As temperatures continue to drop this winter, more and more local residents may be facing the burden of home-heating costs in these tough economic times.

The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program helps low-income families with their heating bills. LIHEAP assistance is a grant; you do not have to repay it. In addition, you don’t have to be on public assistance or have an unpaid heating bill to receive assistance. And, it doesn't matter whether you rent or own your home.

LIHEAP offers both cash and crisis grants. Cash grants help families pay their regular heating bills. The grant is sent directly to your utility company or fuel provider, and it will be credited on your bill. (In some cases, the check may be mailed to you directly.) Crisis grants help with emergency heating situations, such as a fuel shortage that may leave you without heat, utility service termination, a broken furnace or leaking lines.

It is my pleasure to inform you that LIHEAP is increasing cash grant amounts by $100 and extending the program through April 2 because of the state's efficient management of the program. The Department of Public Welfare, which administers the program, expects these changes will allow an additional 80,000 households to receive help paying their heating bills this winter. DPW also expects cash grants to average $326.

To apply, visit http://www.dpw.state.pa.us/ and type "LIHEAP" in the Keyword search box. You also may request an application by calling the statewide LIHEAP hotline at 1-866-857-7095, or stop by my Reading office. To apply, you will need the names of every person living in your household, their dates of birth, Social Security numbers and proof of income, and a recent heating bill.

If you can't benefit from this program, but know someone who can, please pass along this information so they don’t get left out in the cold this winter.

Rep. Caltagirone represents the 127th Legislative District in Berks County. His office is located at 645 Penn St., 2nd Floor, Reading. The phone number is 610-376-1529.

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ONE IN TEN PENNSYLVANIANS HAVE “UNCLAIMED PROPERTY” – DO YOU?

State Senator Michael A. O’Pake, Senate Democratic Whip

Each year, Pennsylvania’s state Treasury Department receives from businesses, banks, insurance companies and others millions of dollars in “unclaimed property.”

“Unclaimed property” consists of things like abandoned bank accounts, forgotten stocks and stock dividends, checks that have not been cashed, certificates of deposit, life insurance policies, safe deposit box contents and other assets that have been held in dormant, inactive accounts -- and where the holder of the property has been unable to contact or locate the rightful owner.

Such unclaimed property, after about five years of being held in dormant or inactive accounts, “escheats” to the state for one purpose: to keep it safe and secure until it is claimed by the rightful owner.

There is no time limit to claim your property. After proving ownership, your property will be returned to you without charge.

According to state Treasurer Robert McCord, Pennsylvania is currently seeking the owners of over $1.5 billion in unclaimed property -- and his office estimates that one in every ten Pennsylvanians has unclaimed property.

For example, you might have “unclaimed property” if:

• you were named as a beneficiary of a life insurance policy;
• you opened a savings account and forgot about it, or your account went inactive because ;you did not make withdrawals or deposits over a period of time;
• you moved, forgot to change your address at the post office, and had money coming to you;
• you left your job to start a new one and never received your final paycheck; or
• you forgot to redeem a gift certificate and it expired.

 

To find out if the state is holding any “unclaimed property” that belongs to you, the state Treasury Department has established an “unclaimed property database” which – if you have access to the Internet – can be searched online by visiting the Treasury Department’s Web site at http://www.patreasury.org/. You may also simply call the Department toll free at 1-800-222-2046 to find out if they’re holding any “unclaimed property” that belongs to you.

In the meantime, in order to prevent your property from becoming “unclaimed” to begin with, here are a few suggestions to consider:

• keep accurate records of all banks accounts, stocks, safe deposit boxes, life insurance policies and other financial matters;
• stay in touch with all financial institutions holding accounts in your name at least once every three years;
• cash all checks for dividends, insurance benefits and wages;
• notify a family member or trusted adviser of the location of your financial records; and
• prepare a checklist of all financial assets in order to notify all concerned parties if you change your address.

On another matter, I’m pleased to announce that honorably discharged veterans of the United States Armed Forces now have a new way to proudly display their service to a grateful state and nation. A new series of military license plates honoring veterans of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard are now available from PennDOT. The new plates feature the standard Pennsylvania license plate colors of blue, white and yellow along with the applicable branch of service emblem or logo on the left side of the plate. Pennsylvania is printed at the top of the plate, with the name of the applicable branch of service at the bottom. To obtain one of these plates, honorably discharged veterans must complete and mail Form MV-150, Application for U.S. Military Veteran Registration Plate, to PennDOT and include a certified copy of their DD-214, along with a $20 fee. The MV-150 form is available at PennDOT’s driver and vehicle services Web site at http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/ -- or by contacting my district office at 610-929-2151, where we’ll be glad to be of assistance on this, or any other state-related matter. As always, we’re here to help.

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State Budget Process Poses Many Challenges

Submitted by State Rep. Jim Cox 129^th Legislative District

Gov. Ed Rendell is scheduled to introduce Pennsylvania’s 2010-11 fiscal budget next month, roughly four months after our latest budget was finalized. House Democrat leaders, who currently control which bills are brought to the House floor for a vote, have stated that the upcoming budget will “be on time this year.” While I am hopeful that this is the case, I am a bit skeptical.

Crafting and passing a responsible budget on time is a daunting task. Passing a late budget can cause a myriad of issues that impact current and future generations, possibly resulting in additional operating costs, layoffs and furloughs. State agencies and local governments are unable to effectively budget and plan, possibly leading to delays in funding for programs and services for everyone, including Pennsylvania seniors.

And while a budget was eventually passed this year, the uncertainty of the future economic climate brings with it many questions for next year’s budget. How will we fund our schools? Will taxes rise? Will services be added or reduced? Many of the answers may not be known until well into next year. The secret to producing a responsible budget is to spend wisely. This helps us to prevent for a possible downturn in the economy.

What are your thoughts on our state budget? How should we fund future endeavors for our Commonwealth?

Share your thoughts with me on this issue by taking a brief survey at my Web site at RepJimCox.com. If you do not have access to the Internet, please contact my office toll-free at (866) 538-2938 to take the survey by telephone. The survey should only take you a few minutes to complete and your input will be very helpful to me as I continue to fight for what all Pennsylvanians deserve: a responsible state budget.

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State Senator Michael A. O’Pake, Senate Democratic Whip

SENIORS: BEWARE OF MONEY-MAKING SCHEMES AND SCAMS

As the deadline for “2008 tax year” applications under the state’s Property Tax and Rent Rebate (PTRR) program approached just last month, my office learned of a highly suspect mailing by a NON-governmental entity offering – for a $39 fee – to help seniors file applications for rebates under the program.

While it was not known precisely where in Pennsylvania this mail piece was sent or how many people received it, its contents raised sufficient alarm that it was referred to the state’s Office of Attorney General for investigation.

It’s not the first time that persons motivated by profit would attempt to cash in at the expense of our fixed-income seniors by offering a service that is available for “free” through my office, other legislators’ offices, the Department of Revenue, or any number of legitimate senior citizen service and advocacy organizations including Berks Encore.

But, what was particularly bothersome about this non-governmental mailing and solicitation was not just the $39 fee it was attempting to charge people for assistance (although, the fee itself was bad enough). What was particularly bothersome was the fact that the entity was soliciting the payment of the $39 fee in advance -- before doing a thing to supposedly help anybody, while at the same time seeking to collect personal and credit card information.

What this all points up to is the fact that our seniors – and their loved ones – need to constantly be on guard against such money-making schemes and real scams that are designed to victimize and defraud our older citizens.

Statistically, senior citizens are favored targets for many kinds of consumer fraud. These include identity theft, charities, telemarketing and sweepstakes fraud.

With the rise of the computer age, and with more and more of our seniors now using the Internet, the “Information Superhighway” or “Cyberspace” is also the latest tool being used by crooks to rip people off. Many scam artists who previously used the telephone or mail to defraud consumers are now using the Internet and online services. And, today, identity theft – often the result of online activity – is the fastest growing white collar crime in America. It is a crime that can cause serious harm to your finances, your credit and your peace of mind.

To fight back, older citizens who suspect financial exploitation and/or victimization should contact the state Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Unit at any sign of fraudulent activity by calling, toll-free at 1-866-623-2137. We have also assembled “senior citizen crime prevention” materials that are available “free of any charge” by contacting my office at 610-929-2151. And, as a member of the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, I would also encourage seniors and others with access to the Internet to visit my website at http://www.senator-opake.com/ and click on the “Identity Theft” link to access commission information about what steps to take if and when you ever become the victim of this crime.

In the meantime, as the “2009 tax year” applications for the state’s Property Tax and Rent Rebate program are expected to be available by mid-February, I would urge all seniors who qualify to get your applications filled out and sent in as soon as possible after the applications become available. The sooner you file, the sooner your rebate check will be in the mail when the checks are first issued in July.

This past year, more than 17,600 Berks County seniors received property tax and rent rebates totaling some $7.5 million. Of those 17,600-plus Berks County PTRR recipients, approximately 4,200 qualified for an added $1 million in “supplemental rebates” of up to $350 -- or one half of the base rebate.

For interested individuals who may be unfamiliar with the PTRR program, the program benefits senior citizens age 65 and older, widows and widowers age 50 and older and disabled adults age 18 and older. Since 2006, a major expansion of the program has increased the size of the rebates and allowed thousands of additional Pennsylvanians to qualify. The income limit for qualifying homeowners was increased from $15,000 to $35,000 and the size of the maximum regular rebate was increased from $500 to $650 for both renters and homeowners. Applicants can exclude one-half of Social Security income, so people who make substantially more than $35,000 may still qualify for a rebate. Qualifying homeowners who pay a disproportionate share of their income in property taxes (more than 15 percent) are also entitled to receive a supplemental rebate of up to $325 – or one half of the base rebate – boosting total rebates in some cases to as much as $975. The 2008 tax year was the second consecutive year that supplemental rebates, calculated automatically if you qualify, were made available to PTRR claimants.

It’s important to point out that this rebate assistance for our seniors is in addition to the property tax relief generated for all homeowners from slots gaming.

And, again, if you need help in filling out the necessary Property Tax and Rent Rebate (PTRR) application, please remember: “free assistance” is available by contacting my district office at 610-929-2151. We are here to help.

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