Corbett Ceremoniously Signs Perk Valley Funding Bill

Perkiomen Valley School District Officials could breath a sigh of relief after Governor Tom Corbett signed legislation ensuring that the school would receive payments in lieu of taxes for tax-exempt state forest land in the area.

State Representative Marcy Toepel introduced the legislation, which impacts funding for the Perkiomen Valley and Methacton school districts, over the summer.

Now called Act 61 of 2013, the bill amends the Forest Reserves Municipal Financial Relief Law, reducing the number of portions of land on Evansburg State Park Property that must be leased in order for payments to be made to the school district; previously the number was 75, and when the state fell below that number, it stopped making payments to the districts. Now only 30 portions of the land have to be leased for the schools to received the funding.

“Budgets across all levels of governments and school districts have been reduced in recent years, so it’s crucial we do all we can to get school districts the funding they deserve,” Toepel said.

Perkiomen Valley stands to gain more than $300,000 in funding due to the bill.

Joining Corbett and Toepel at the signing were Lynn Bigelow, the vice president of the Perkiomen Valley School Board; and Reps. Mike Vereb (R-Montgomery), Matthew Bradford (D-Montgomery), and Mark Painter (D-Montgomery).