Clifton Heights council approves 2026 budget and municipal fee ordinance, raises refuse fee

Clifton Heights — The Clifton Heights Borough Council on a unanimous voice and roll-call vote approved the borough’s 2026 budget and Ordinance No. 891, which sets the borough’s real estate tax components and establishes municipal fees including a higher refuse collection charge and a sewer rental rate.

The manager presented the ordinance and budget, saying the total real-estate-related millage sums to 11.234 mills when line items for debt service, recreation, fire service and police pension are combined. He told council that contract and tipping-fee increases for trash collection required using a portion of the borough’s fund balance to keep the budget balanced while maintaining a 0% tax-rate increase.

"To fully fund the trash, we're gonna be fall short about $27,000 taken out of the fund balance," the manager said as he laid out the projections and recommended a $100-per-year adjustment to the refuse fee. The ordinance sets the refuse disposal and collection fee at $4.29 per pickup (single-family dwellings) and establishes a sewer rental rate of $414 per household.

Council members questioned the timeline and the size of the increase, with one member urging residents to reduce waste where possible as county and contractor charges squeeze the borough’s budget. Finance staff cautioned that the borough’s 93% collection-rate assumption is conservative and that ongoing tipping-fee volatility could require future adjustments.

The council voted to approve the ordinance and the budget after discussion. The motion to adopt the 2026 Clifton Heights Borough budget and Ordinance No. 891 passed on a roll call with affirmative votes from the full council.

Votes at a glance - Adopt 2026 Clifton Heights Borough budget and Ordinance No. 891 (tax levy and municipal fees): approved (unanimous roll call). - Tax rebate to Potter's House Church (Acts 1 Inc) for $1,876.30: approved (unanimous roll call). - Award demolition contract for 32 Mill Street to ADU Services, low bid $96,560 (funded by OHCD grant $98,000): approved (unanimous roll call, solicitor to finalize contract). - Approve Resolution 2025-16 to submit an LSA grant application for acquisition of a vacant property at Oak Avenue & Baltimore Pike, designate borough manager to execute documents: approved. - Approve contract through Keystone Purchasing Network with S.J. Thomas Company for curbs and sidewalks ($500,000, grant-funded): approved. - Approve trade of a 2011 Ford van for a 2014 Ford extended van and modification for the ladder truck (total cost $14,000): approved. - Approve second and final payment of $8,576.26 to Innovative Construction Services Inc. for the 2025 road improvement program (liquid fuels): approved. - Appoint John Hannah, CPA, as independent auditor to prepare the Borough’s 2025 financial statements: approved.

Why it matters The ordinance preserves a 0% real-estate tax increase while shifting part of the cost pressure from service-contract and tipping-fee increases onto municipal fees and limited fund-balance draws. For households, the most visible immediate change is the higher refuse-collection fee and the fixed sewer rental rate, both of which affect monthly household bills rather than the borough’s millage.

What’s next Ordinance No. 891 takes effect as provided by law. The council directed staff to continue monitoring tipping fees and contract costs and to report back if additional adjustments or further use of fund balance is needed. A resident who spoke during closing public participation asked about the selection process for the appointed auditor and about the scope of sidewalk work; council staff said John Hannah has served the borough for at least five years and explained grant and PennDOT responsibilities for sidewalk repairs.