Chambersburg Borough Council voted 9-1 to hire Erie-based Knox Law to prepare for possible legal action seeking a countywide reassessment in Franklin County. The firm is being asked to develop the legal groundwork if county officials do not move toward a reassessment within a reasonable timeframe, according to TristateAlert and Fox43.
Why the borough wants a reassessment
Council President David Wilson told Fox43 that Chambersburg is seeking what it considers a fairer and more equitable tax base, not a larger overall tax collection. Council member Nasreen Khan said a new assessment could reduce some property owners' tax bills, Fox43 reported. A reassessment would update property values and establish a new base-year value, ABC27 reported.
Franklin County last completed a full countywide reassessment in 1961. ABC27 reported that 47 of 87 property-owner appeals in 2024 resulted in changes to assessed values. The station also reported that Chambersburg's tax rate was 27 mills, below the state limit of 30 mills. Those figures are central to the disagreement over whether the current system continues to reflect property conditions.
County officials oppose moving ahead now
What the assessment system means for the county budget
According to the Franklin County Tax Assessment Office, all county real estate assessments represent 100% of the 1961 market value. That means a reassessment would change the values used to distribute the property-tax burden, although the available information does not establish what share of county revenue comes from property taxes. Franklin County commissioners' proposed 2026 budget totaled $154.2 million and kept the county's total property-tax rate at 29.1 mills: 25.0 mills for general operations and 4.1 mills for debt service, according to the Franklin County commissioners. The proposal did not call for a tax-rate increase, but changes in assessed values could affect how that existing tax burden is distributed among properties.
Pennsylvania has no statewide requirement for counties to conduct regular property reassessments. Franklin County commissioners have said they will not order one unless the state establishes a reasonable reassessment frequency or a court requires it, Fox43 reported. The commissioners also said a reassessment is not currently warranted and that they would defend the county's existing approach while accepting a court's eventual decision.
Chambersburg council members have said they would prefer to resolve the disagreement through talks rather than litigation. The vote authorizes Knox Law to prepare for a court challenge if those discussions do not produce progress, according to TristateAlert and Fox43.
The dispute reflects a broader state issue
The age of Franklin County's assessment is part of a broader Pennsylvania issue. GoErie reported that the county was one of 27 in the state whose last full reassessment had occurred in 1999 or earlier. More than one-third of Pennsylvania's 67 counties had not completed a full reassessment since 2000, leaving about 40% of the state relying on old assessment data, the outlet reported.
Allegheny County illustrates how the issue can move into court. In Flavia Laun v. Allegheny County, a judge ordered the county to begin a reassessment by July 1, 2027, and complete it by June 30, 2032. The county's last full reassessment was in 2012, and that process generated 90,000 appeals, according to Vorys and CBS News Pittsburgh. State Sen. Wayne Fontana has supported legislation requiring reassessments statewide, while Allegheny County's Government Review Commission has recommended reassessments every four years, the outlets reported.
