Middletown Township will reimburse the Pennswood Village senior living facility $6,000 after a state Supreme Court ruling that a municipal "stormwater impact fee" is effectively a tax that cannot be applied to nonprofits. Township solicitor Jim Esposito said other nonprofits and tax-exempt property owners are also seeking refunds. The April 2026 decision in Borough of West Chester v. Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education set a binding statewide precedent, and although Middletown's fee was not the subject of that case, it is similar to the one struck down. The township's fee charges homeowners a flat $60 a year and bases commercial charges on the size of impervious surfaces like parking lots. It raises about $2 million annually to help meet an estimated $1.5 million per year in stormwater infrastructure needs plus $200,000 per year in maintenance. Esposito said settlement agreements include a provision allowing the township to reinstate the charge on exempt properties if case law or legislation later permits it, but the budget impact remains unclear.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 9/23/2026