What action does a municipality need to take to impose a higher rate EMST rate under Act 222?
To increase the rate of the Emergency and Municipal Services Tax, a municipality must either amend its existing ordinance that levied the Occupational Privilege Tax under Act 511 or enact a new ordinance under the provisions of Act 511 and Act 222. The new ordinance or proposed amendment should include the new name of the tax, the amount of the tax, the amount of the low-income exemption and the jurisdiction’s withholding policy. Before a taxing jurisdiction can adopt a new ordinance imposing an EMST, it must advertise consideration of the new tax in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for three weeks. The advertisement must specify details of the tax, the reason for the tax and amount of revenue estimated to be derived from the tax. Within 15 days after an ordinance has been amended or adopted, municipalities must file a signed copy of it with DCED. Finally, to require employer withholding at the new rate, the Municipal Secretary must notify DCED of the change in the rate v
