School Officials Refute GOP Campaign Mailer’s False Tax Claims

Carmichaels Area school officials are forcefully challenging misleading campaign attack mailers distributed by the Republican Party of Pennsylvania that falsely claim the district imposed a new tax in 2024 and subsequently doubled it the following year.

The controversial mailers target Republican state Senate candidate Al Buchtan, who previously served on the Carmichaels Area School Board. One mailer asserts that Buchtan “voted to start a new tax” in June 2024 and then “raised the tax 100% the next year!” Another GOP mailer claims Buchtan and the school board “raised our taxes… twice! Two years in a row.”

“That is false,” Carmichaels Superintendent Amy Todd stated unequivocally on Friday. “We did not impose a new tax.”

According to district records and meeting minutes, the school board has not raised the property tax millage rate since 2019. The $5 occupational privilege tax referenced in the Republican Party’s mailers has actually been in effect since at least 2013, and possibly longer.

The mailers feature dramatic imagery, including one showing a red arrow with the word “TAXES” written on it blowing through a home’s roof, implying significant property tax increases for district residents.

The state Republican Party’s claim about a tax doubling in June 2025 appears to misrepresent a motion regarding the district’s occupational privilege tax. While the motion mentioned an increase from $5 to $10, Superintendent Todd explained this was an administrative error in the motion’s wording. The $10 occupational privilege tax is actually split evenly between the school district and Carmichaels Borough, with each receiving $5.

“Our collection did not change,” Todd clarified, noting the district’s portion remained at $5. She added that the board plans to vote next month to retroactively “correct” the misleading June 2025 motion language.

The misleading mailers have created significant confusion among district taxpayers, who have been contacting school board members and district officials with concerns. The situation became so problematic that the school board addressed it during Thursday night’s meeting and planned to issue a formal statement on the district’s website and social media platforms.

“This isn’t an endorsement for someone or against someone. We just want our taxpayers to know we haven’t imposed new taxes,” board President John Menhart said in a phone interview. “For that to be out there, some of our board members are getting phone calls. We just want the truth to be known.”

When contacted for comment, Republican Party of Pennsylvania spokesman James Markley defended the mailers, stating via email: “Everything in the mailer that was sent out is correct according to the meeting minutes.”

District officials indicated they do not plan to pursue legal action against the state GOP, focusing instead on correcting the record through public communications.

“We’re most concerned about the taxpayers in our district getting the right information,” Menhart emphasized.

Superintendent Todd added, “We’ll communicate to our taxpayers and put information on our website and do a public outreach to make sure the taxpayers and our board have all the information they need so they can answer questions.”

The controversy comes amid a heated Republican primary race. Buchtan served on the Carmichaels Area School Board from December 2023 until his resignation last September when he moved to a rental home in Canonsburg. His candidacy faces additional challenges from three registered Republicans in the 46th state Senate District, who are contesting his nominating petitions due to his listing home addresses in both Cumberland Township and Canonsburg, though he is registered to vote in the latter.

The primary election on May 19 represents the first time incumbent Senator Camera Bartolotta, R-Carroll, has faced a Republican challenger since winning election in 2014. The district encompasses Washington and Greene counties along with the southern portion of Beaver County.