[Adopted 5-2-2017 by Ord. No. 357; amended in its entirety 5-17-2023 by Ord. No. 409]
A. 
Scope. The scope of this article relates to Act 172 of 2016, as well as Act 91 of 2020, and its intended incentives for municipal volunteers of fire companies and nonprofit emergency medical services agencies.
B. 
Purpose. The purpose of this article is to authorize the Township to enact a tax credit against an active volunteer's tax liability, to be provided as a tax rebate for taxes previously paid for a qualifying year, as a financial incentive to 1) acknowledge the value and the absence of any public cost for volunteer fire protection and nonprofit emergency medical services provided by active volunteers; and 2) encourage individuals to volunteer, or for former volunteers to consider rejoining as active volunteers, in a volunteer fire company or nonprofit emergency medical services agency.
A. 
Earned income tax credit. Each qualifying volunteer, as defined and certified in accordance with the provisions of this article, shall receive a 100% earned income tax credit per year. The credit shall be applied to that portion of the earned income tax that is payable to Whitpain Township and cannot exceed the qualifying volunteer's liability to the Township for the earned income tax due on wages/net profits earned in that tax year. Such tax credit shall be applied through a rebate provided to the qualifying volunteer for taxes previously paid during a qualifying year. By resolution, the Board of Supervisors may adjust the amount of the earned income tax credit at any time in its sole discretion.
B. 
Real property tax credit. Each qualifying volunteer, as defined and certified in accordance with the provisions of this article, shall be entitled to receive a real property tax credit in the amount of 100% of the real property tax levied on residential real property owned and occupied by a qualifying volunteer in that tax year. Such tax credit shall be applied through a rebate provided to the qualifying volunteer for taxes previously paid during a qualifying year.
C. 
Limitations. The tax credits established by this article may be used against the qualifying volunteer's tax liability for the current taxable year and every taxable year the individual is qualified as a qualifying volunteer. The tax credits and refunds provided to qualifying volunteers as established by this article shall remain in effect until the Township repeals this article.
A. 
Qualifying volunteer criteria. To be a qualifying volunteer under this article, an individual must 1) be a Township resident; 2) have served as an active volunteer, in good standing, as so certified under this article, for the entire preceding calendar year, for a volunteer fire company and/or a nonprofit emergency medical services agency; and 3) satisfy the requirements of the volunteer service credit program as established by the Board of Supervisors.
B. 
Requirements of volunteer service credit program. The Board of Supervisors shall, by resolution, establish the annual requirements of the volunteer service credit program, as may be amended from time to time. Satisfaction of these requirements shall be required for the certification of a volunteer as a qualifying volunteer for the purposes of establishing eligibility for the tax credits contemplated by this article. This resolution shall require the Chiefs of the Centre Square Fire Company or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency Chief, as applicable, or their designees, to establish and maintain a service log that documents the activities of each volunteer that qualifies for credit toward active service under the volunteer service credit program and the calculation of the total credits earned for each volunteer in the Centre Square Fire Company or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency. The Board of Supervisors shall, with the advice of the Chiefs of the Centre Square Fire Company or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency Chief, as applicable, or their designees, adopt guidelines, including forms and applications, necessary to implement the volunteer service credit program described herein.
C. 
Injured active volunteer. An active volunteer who was injured during a response to an emergency call and can no longer serve as an active volunteer because of the injury and who would otherwise be eligible for tax credits under this article shall be eligible for such tax credits for the succeeding five tax years.
D. 
Eligibility list. A notarized list of eligible active volunteers shall be submitted to the governing body, no later than 45 days before tax notices are to be distributed, by the Chiefs of the Centre Square Fire Company or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency, as applicable.
E. 
Criteria revision. The Board of Supervisors reserves the right to revise the criteria for a qualifying volunteer, in whole or in part, at its sole discretion
A. 
To receive certification as a qualifying volunteer under this article, an individual must meet the qualifying volunteer criteria set forth in § 136-64 and, by January 15 of each year (following the year in which an individual has served as an active volunteer), sign and submit an application for certification as a qualifying volunteer to the Centre Square Fire Company's Chief or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency Chief, as applicable.
B. 
Thereafter, the Centre Square Fire Company's Chief or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency Chief, as applicable, shall review all applications submitted and indicate on each application whether he/she recommends the volunteer to be certified as a qualifying volunteer. Additionally, the Chief and another officer of the Centre Square Fire Company, and the supervisor or Chief and another officer of the Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency shall sign the application attesting to the individual's status as an active volunteer or that the individual can no longer serve as an active volunteer due to injury.
C. 
By February 15 of the same year, the Centre Square Fire Company's Chief or the Township's Nonprofit Emergency Medical Services Agency Chief, as applicable, shall forward all applications received, with all supporting documentation, to the Board of Supervisors.
D. 
Board of Supervisors shall review the applications and supporting documentation and shall, by Board motion, certify all qualifying volunteers on or before March 1 of each year. Only those volunteers so certified by the Board of Supervisors shall receive the earned income tax credit and the real property tax credit, and these credits may be utilized for any earned income taxes and/or real property taxes paid or payable to the Township during or for the previous calendar year only. Such tax credit will take the form of a rebate issued to qualifying volunteers. The Board of Supervisors shall, by resolution, adopt a process for rejecting a claim by an active volunteer who does not satisfy all of the criteria set forth in § 136-64 for claims for the tax credit contemplated by this article.
A volunteer may appeal the decision of the Board of Supervisors to not certify him or her as a qualifying volunteer by submitting a written request for a hearing before the Board of Supervisors to the Township Secretary within 10 days of the date of the Board's decision.
Within 10 days of the Board of Supervisors' decision certifying qualifying volunteers, the Township Secretary shall issue a qualifying volunteer exemption certificate to each qualifying volunteer, in a form acceptable to the Tax Collector appointed by the Montgomery County Tax Collection Committee to collect the earned income tax and the Township's Tax Collector elected to collect the Township's real property tax.
A. 
Any person who knowingly makes, or conspires to make, a false application for certification as a qualifying volunteer commits a misdemeanor of the first degree punishable by a fine of $2,500.
B. 
Any person who knowingly provides, or conspires to provide, a false certification recommendation under this article commits a misdemeanor of the first degree punishable by a fine of $2,500.