COVID-19 Leads To Decrease In Fuel Tax Payments To Local-Area Towns, Including Newtown

Following an executive session to discuss litigation, the Newtown, Bucks County, Joint Municipal Authority (aka Sewer Authority) voted 5–0 (with one member absent) to approve the third addendum to the agreement of land sale with DeLuca Newtown LLC.

Recall that the land in question was purchased by the Sewer Authority for $1.5 million in a bid to build a waster water (sewage) treatment plant. That effort failed due to opposition by residents. Consequently, the land was put up for sale. For more on that, read “What You Need to Know About the #NewtownPA Sewer Authority Land Sale Agreement.”

The decision - made at the 10 November 2026 Authority Board meeting, extends DeLuca’s due diligence period until December 8, 2027.

Following an executive session to discuss litigation, the Newtown, Bucks County, Joint Municipal Authority voted 5–0 (with one member absent) to approve the third addendum to the agreement of sale with DeLuca Newtown LLC. The decision - made at the 10 November 2026 Authority Board meeting, extends DeLuca’s due diligence period until December 8, 2027.

• Action and Vote at 10 November 2026 Meeting: Following an executive session to discuss litigation, the Newtown, Bucks County, Joint Municipal Authority voted 5–0 (with one member absent) to approve the third addendum to the agreement of sale with DeLuca Newtown LLC.
• Terms of the Extension: The third addendum extends DeLuca’s due diligence period until December 8, 2027.
• Purpose & Authority Rationale:
  • The extension gives DeLuca additional time to appear before the township, advance its proposal (presenting a plan for 42 single-family homes), and secure necessary approvals to purchase the property at the negotiated price for the benefit of ratepayers.
  • Chairman Jerry Schenkman emphasized that the Authority has no other prospective buyers or reasonable proposals, making it in the Authority's best interest to keep the contract active.
  • The board noted that local development approvals frequently require extended timelines, citing past matters such as Wawa (which took five years) and KRE's 245-apartment proposal (which involved litigation and condemnation)

While vacant offices and commercial properties dot the landscape, Lower Salford Township in Montgomery County has secured a $1.794 million state grant to purchase and preserve the 57-acre Allebach property in Harleysville, protecting it from future development.

The scenic, historically significant property could eventually become a community park or connect to the township’s extensive network of walking trails.

4 Surprising Takeaways from the 15 September 2026 Planning Meeting

Everyday suburban life—from where you park your car to whether you can enjoy a quiet dinner on an outdoor patio—is continuously shaped by local development decisions. Behind the scenes, municipal advisory bodies routinely debate the fine details of commercial parking ratios, restaurant tenant caps, and ambient noise restrictions. The Newtown Township Planning Commission’s meeting on September 15, 2026, offered a compelling peek behind the curtain of municipal decision-making, illustrating how micro-level zoning reviews directly guide the township's physical footprint and commercial energy.

Newtown Township's November 10, 2026 Bills List includes $460,084.99 in vendor payments. Public safety expenditures account for a substantial portion of the total. The bills cover payments issued between October 29 and November 10, 2026.

With township taxes and spending priorities continuing to attract public attention, residents should examine not just individual purchases but how these expenditures fit into the township's overall budget and long-term financial commitments.

The Newtown Township Board of Supervisors will consider several important matters at its November 10 meeting, including:

• 2027 Township Budget: Consider authorizing advertisement of the preliminary budget.

• Fire & EMS Taxes: Consider revising and advertising the Fire & EMS Tax Millage Ordinance.

• Spread Bagelry: Hold a conditional use hearing for the proposed business at 2804 S. Eagle Road.

• Township Spending: Consider approving $460,084.99 in bills and $223,061.23 in transfers.

• Road Program: Consider final payment certification for the 2026 Liquid Fuels Road Program.

• Other Business: Consider a planning module resolution for 518 S. State Street and hear the Police Chief's report.

   

This UNOFFICIAL 2026 Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) Voting Record covers the period January 14 through October 14, 2026.

The record was compiled by John Mack based on approved BOS meeting minutes.  Consult approved meeting minutes for authoritative information.

From high-tech workforce development to costly playground restoration, here are five eye-opening takeaways.

The Newtown Township Bills List for October 28, 2026, details expenditures across multiple municipal accounts. The total disbursements amount to $318,815.07, which encompasses various vendor checks, electronic payments, and internal fund transfers.

Expenses are categorized into specific areas such as the General Fund, Fire Protection Fund, Escrow Fund, Capital Projects Fund, and Recreation Capital Fund. Key transactions involve payments for professional services, infrastructure maintenance, public safety operations, and community programs.

The Newtown Township Supervisors (BOS) are elected to manage the township activities on behalf of all citizens. The question is: How well are they doing their job?

This survey asks your opinion of the performance - Poor, So So, Great, No Opinion - of the Newtown BOS related to the following issues::

• Enhancing pedestrian Safety (such as improving pedestrian crosswalks)
• Preventing overdevelopment (you be the judge of what is and what is not overdevelopment)
• Protecting the Environment
• Keeping Citizens Informed (e.g., via a well-maintained website, answering residents' questions at public meetings, etc.)
• Wisely Spending Tax Dollars (enough said!)
• Maintaining Roads (are enough roads being repaved? the BOS decides this.)
• Seeking Grants for Projects (free money!)
  Performing year-end performance reviews of management

Please take a few minutes to respond to the survey. I encourage you to also add comments. Your responses and comments are confidential. Keep in mind that this survey is specifically for Newtown Township residents. A summary of responses will be published in my News of Interest to Newtown Area Residents e-Newsletter after receiving 100 responses.

The preliminary 2027 Newtown Township budget must be advertised - made available to the public - for 20 days before adoption. At the 14 October 2026 Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, I urged the Board to advertise the budget on October 28, allowing residents more time to review the proposal and participate in the discussion (the 2026 budget was made public on October 22, 2025).

Unfortunately, at the October 28, 2026, BOS meeting, the vote was 3-2 AGAINST advertising the budget! Supervisors Snyder, Merriman, and Merk voted NAY, Calabro and Davis voted YEA. Now, the earliest that the budget will be available for public viewing is 11 November - a day after the 10 November BOS meeting, where - presumably - the BOS WILL APPROVE TO MAKE IT PUBLIC! Hopefully, the scheduled November 16 BOS WORK SESSION will be devoted to public discussion of the budget, unless that session is canceled as was the fate of all but one WS this year!

Local government is where abstract fiscal policy collides directly with daily human life.

During this meeting of the Newtown Township PA Board of Supervisors (BOS) elected officials debated the upcoming/preliminary 2027 budget, community safety concerns, and employee compensation.

Discussions focused on balancing the general fund reserves while funding essential public services like the fire department and road maintenance. Residents also voiced concerns regarding pedestrian safety near local intersections and transparency surrounding the proposed financial plans.

Additionally, the board addressed zoning applications, intergovernmental agreements, and departmental reports from emergency services.

What Transpired at the 28 October 2026 Newtown's BOS Meeting

While Newtown Township faces a proposed 15% tax hike, supervisors debated giving Assistant Township Manager Katherine McGovern a permanent $35,000 salary increase. Some supervisors defended the raise as fair compensation for additional duties, while others questioned its size and suggested a one-time bonus instead. Residents raised concerns about financial transparency, qualifications, and accountability.

4 Eye-Opening Takeaways from Public Comments Submitted by Email to comments@newtownpa.gov

Behind the scenes of municipal administration, an official public comment inbox such as comments@twp.newtown.pa.us serves as a digital town square.

Residents, community advocates, and township personnel use electronic communications to raise concerns, advocate for policy changes, and communicate information relevant to local government.

A review of these records reveals four particularly interesting themes: pedestrian safety, environmental preservation, fair allocation of municipal service costs, and the sometimes confusing realities of communicating with township officials.

This "Deep Dive" podcast reviews a collection of public correspondence and emails sent to the Newtown Township Comments email inbox between January and August 2026.

Residents raised various local concerns, including requests for crosswalk updates, input regarding a fire services agreement, and proposals to modify sidewalk snow removal ordinances. Additional correspondence addressed community topics such as the preservation of sewer authority land as open space and the addition of a new sidewalk on Eagle Road to improve pedestrian safety.

Six Key Takeaways from the October 27, 2026 Meet Mack Tuesday Zoom Meeting

For many Newtown Township property owners, local government finance becomes real when the annual tax bill arrives.

But where exactly does the money go? Are our roads receiving adequate maintenance? Are outside contractors being properly monitored? And how much opportunity do residents have to question decisions before they are made?\

These questions were central to the October 27, 2026 Meet Mack Tuesday Zoom discussion, which examined Newtown Township's preliminary 2027 budget, municipal spending, public accountability, and other community concerns.

Newtown Township supervisors recently evaluated a proposed 2027 budget featuring a 15% property tax increase, sparking debate over whether to ease the financial pressure on citizens by tapping into township cash reserves.

While the Township Manager advised protecting the established 10% reserve threshold, Supervisor Phil Calabro advocated drawing down roughly $700,000 to lower the upcoming tax burden.

Beyond the property tax adjustments, the financial plan outlines several key expenditures, including capital investments for police gear and vehicles, as well as funding for local park and playground upgrades. Additionally, the proposal establishes a new zoning and code enforcement director role while omitting multiple other personnel requests.

As the board moves toward a final December vote, concerned residents are urging officials to publicize the preliminary draft early to maximize public input.

Takeaways from the October 21, 2026 Newtown Township Human Relations Commission Meeting

The proceedings of the October 21, 2026, public meeting of the Newtown Township Human Relations Commission (NTHRC) reveal eye-opening truths about modern grassroots public service. The conversation between commission members offers an intimate look at the visibility challenges, administrative paradoxes, and quiet dedication that define small-town civil rights governance.

The Bucks County Orphans’ Court approved the $14.9 million sale and transfer of Chandler Hall Health Services’ operations to a for-profit buyer on October 19, following testimony that the longtime nonprofit senior-care community could otherwise face closure.

The meeting covered multiple zoning and land development applications, including residential variance requests on Hillside Road and Taylor Avenue, a residential demolition and rebuild on Washington Crossing Road, a conditional use recommendation for Spread Bagelry, and an extensive preliminary review of additions and site revisions for Newtown Elementary School. The commission also addressed administrative matters, including township budgeting for zoning services and local property updates.

At the 14 October 2026 Newtown Board of Supervisors meeting, John Mack asked where is the estimated $300,000 needed to cover the estimated $1.3 final cost of the project. This was during a motion to approve a $985,850 bid for the construction of the pedestrian bridge.

Mack noted that while the Township Manager mentioned an additional $100,000 grant was received by the Newtown Creek Coalition for the project, the Coalition did not mention such a grant on its website.

In other words, NO grant has yet neen awarded to the NCC and our state representatives seem to expect Newtown Township and Borough to commit to supply additional funding!

• 2027 Budget Presentation: The proposed budget contemplates a net real estate tax increase of 2.635 mills ($103.39 per year / $8.61 per month for the average assessed residential unit). This includes a 3-mill increase for the Fire Protection Fund to support paid personnel as the SAFER grant expires in March 2027, offset by a 0.6-mill tax reduction in Debt Service.
• Capital Investments: Key budget highlights feature $300,000 for replacing the Robert's Ridge playground, $100,000 for a Helen Randle Park master plan to leverage future grant opportunities, and an $850,000 road paving program covering priority segments such as Linton Hill and Wrights Road.
• Newtown Creek Pedestrian Bridge: The Board voted to award the project construction bid to RoadCon, Inc. for $985,850. 

• Update (10/16/26): In a September 2, 2026. letter to Mike Sellers (Newtown Creek Coalition) and Julia Waldorf (Newtown Borough Council), PA State Senator Steven J. Santarsiero and House Representative Perry Warren said “While we continue to fully support this project and will wotk together to secure $100,000 in additional state funds to cover most of the increase in construction cost, we look forward to commitments from Newtown Township, Newtown Borough, and/or private funding source(s) to contribute any further funds needed to close the gap behveen the original proposal and the updated plan.”

In other words, NO grant has yet been awarded to the NCC and our state representatives seem to expect Newtown Township and Borough to commit to supply additional funding!

The proposed 2027 draft budget for Newtown Township includes a tax rate increase of approximately 2.6 mills, raising municipal taxes by roughly $103 annually for a typical residential property.

Township manager Micah Lewis explained that this adjustment is primarily driven by a three-mill increase for fire protection and capital investments, which reaches the maximum limit permitted under state regulations.

While the general fund remains steady for now, overall revenues are anticipated to reach $19.1 million alongside specific funding for capital improvements, parks, and local road repairs. These investments encompass architectural plans for public safety facilities, new police vehicles, park equipment upgrades, and infrastructure maintenance.

However, Supervisor Phil Calabro has publicly disagreed with the administration's approach, arguing that the township's substantial financial reserve should be utilized instead to prevent any tax hike for residents.

The Newtown Bucks County Joint Municipal Authority (NBCJMA), also known as the Newtown Sewer Authority, convened on October 13, 2026.

This summaryoutlines a comprehensive lineup of administrative duties, including the review of financial records, consideration of delinquent accounts, and approval of routine expenditures and fund transfers. Key discussions featured standard reports from the engineer, solicitor, manager, and field staff, alongside updates on ongoing old business regarding property sales.

Newtown Township's October 14, 2026 Bills List includes $1,058,220.77 in disbursements, with the overwhelming majority concentrated in pension obligations, employee health insurance, fire protection, and fuel purchases.

The single largest payment is $592,907.70 to the Newtown Township Police Pension Fund, representing approximately 56% of the entire Bills List. The Delaware Valley Health Insurance Trust (DVHIT) follows with $151,882.88 for employee health insurance across township departments.