While most Schuylkill County municipalities are scrambling to explain tax hikes or revenue-neutral shifts to nervous residents, a different kind of debate broke out in Deer Lake last week.
Instead of asking how much to take, one councilman asked if the Borough should give money back.
Councilman Joe Sterns called for a modest 2% reduction in property taxes for 2026. The idea was given at least a fair listen by some but resoundingly rejected by others.
In the end, Deer Lake approved a preliminary budget that calls for holding the line on taxes for next year and setting its post-reassessment, equalized millage rate at 0.546, one of the lowest of all Schuylkill County municipalities and likely the lowest for any Borough.
Deer Lake’s property tax millage prior to the reassessment was just 3.
At 0.546 mills, the Borough expects to collect $50,336 from property taxes in 2026. Deer Lake is unique in that it actually collects more revenue from its earned income tax than it does from real estate taxes.
In 2025, according to Councilman Brian Romeo, who presented the budget at last Tuesday’s council meeting, Deer Lake collected about $142,000 in earned income tax revenue.
“That’s just a demonstration of the prosperity of our Borough,” Romeo said.
He said the median income in Deer Lake is $107,917, which dwarfs the same figure countywide, which is $66,901.
Deer Lake Says No to Tax Cut
The tax cut Sterns proposed sparked a bit of a lively debate among council members. However, they ultimately, and somewhat vehemently rejected the idea.
Sterns said he agreed with the budget as Romeo presented it. However, he said he believes taxpayers “need every nickel of relief they can get right now.”
He called on his fellow council members to partially repeal a tax increase it approved in 2020 by reducing the millage by 2%.
“I think it was overkill,” Sterns said of the tax increase approximately five years ago. “I would even say it was unnecessary.”
He said prior to that tax increase a few years ago, Deer Lake had held the line on property taxes for 40 years and for half that time, the high-end The Pines housing development hadn’t been built.
After The Pines was constructed, Deer Lake saw a “windfall” of 20% greater revenue, Sterns said.
He estimated that Deer Lake has a reserve fund of $378,000. Sterns said governments, like households, ideally should have between three-to-six months of operating expenses in reserve.
What Deer Lake has, Sterns said, far exceeds that. He said that $378,000 in reserve is 150% more than the Borough’s annual operating budget.
“I’m not here to point fingers about the tax increase five years ago. I’m simply here to fix what I believe was a mistake and help our neighbors that are struggling financially and just move forward,” Sterns told council members.
After Sterns made a motion to adjust the new break-even millage and reduce it 2%, Council President David Crouse announced it died for lack of a second after other board members sat in silence for a moment.
Reserves vs. Infrastructure Needs
However, Councilman Steven Reinhart said he agreed with Sterns that there are healthy funds in reserve but before he could vote one way or another, wanted to hear if that money was earmarked for specific purposes.
Mayor Larry Kozlowski said planned paving at The Pines could consume as much as two-thirds of Deer Lake’s Liquid Fuels allocation, potentially leaving it short for other work until the Borough gets its 2027 allocation.
The mayor also said stormwater concerns in that development could become a major expense for the Borough.
Further, raceways under several streets likely will need to be replaced due to age concerns. All told, those three infrastructure projects could take up $300,000 of the reserve Sterns referenced when calling for the tax cut.
Sterns argued that the projects Kozlowski mentioned could be reasons why Deer Lake could float a bond to pay for them rather than tapping into the reserve.
He said those that weren’t seeing the reason for his calling for a tax cut weren’t thinking of people that could potentially use the money they’re paying in property taxes he says the Borough doesn’t necessarily need.
“We don’t see it that way. What if they have an emergency and they need the money,” Sterns asked.
Minimal Savings Debate
Councilman Dave Breslin said he thought just a few months ago that the board was concerned about cash flow problems.
He said Sterns’ proposal would only give him about $4 back per year because his property is assessed at about $200,000.
Romeo added that a property owner with $500,000 in assessed value would save about $6 a year under Sterns’ tax cut.
“So the Borough wouldn’t miss it,” Sterns asked. “Is that what you’re saying? When we take it, it’s so very little but if we want to give it back, it becomes so very much.”
Romeo said it’s a matter of impact to the borough overall, meaning $2-6 from all residents has more impact on the Borough than that amount would have to one individual or family.
He said he thought Sterns would have proposed a bigger tax cut than 2%.
Crouse suggested that “a lot of people don’t even know what they’re paying in taxes because it’s being taken out by the bank. It’s in escrow.”
He added that the tax increase from five years ago was a result of the Borough losing funding and added that Deer Lake is “knee deep in projects” at the moment.
The council president even said the Borough had to borrow money from its savings to pay bills last month.
“Thank God we had it … and you want to give it back,” Crouse asked Sterns. “That little bit we’re going to give back means nothing, Joe. I don’t know what point you’re trying to prove.”
Romeo told Sterns he’d be with him in his push for a tax cut if the Borough weren’t staring at several major projects.
Budget Details
One of the bigger, non-reimbursed one-time expenses for Deer Lake right now is a lake dredging project.
Romeo said the Borough spent $12,176 on the project in 2025 and expects to spend another $16,500 on it in 2026. All money for the project is coming straight from Deer Lake’s general fund.
Another major expense for next year is matching money for a Greenways grant to the tune of $27,700.
On Tuesday, council members did approve a raise for Borough Secretary and Treasurer Sallie Yost of $1,000 annually. They also agreed to spend about $2,000 to upgrade the Borough’s computer system.
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