Harrisville Borough Council will hold a special meeting Tuesday, March 18, to finalize plans to resolve a tax error that overcharged residents last year.

Council President Kathy Bray said the previous council had approved a property tax increase from 8.25 mills to 13.25 mills, set to begin in 2025. However, the new millage rate was erroneously collected for the 2024 tax year.

Council members approved a plan in February to decrease taxes for the 2026 and 2027 seasons by 2.5 mills, but backlash from residents and a need for legal review have pushed them to a special meeting to hopefully resolve the issue.

“We are fixing a procedural error from the previous council,” Bray said. “We wanted to pay our residents directly, but we didn’t know our deficit (for 2025) was going to be $23,000.”

Bray discovered the error last year while attending a seminar designed for newly elected borough officials. She said by the time the error was realized, the tax cards for the 2024 tax season already had been mailed to borough residents.

At the February meeting, Councilwoman Mary Ann Hughes raised concerns regarding the legality of the plan to decrease taxes. She stated that members of the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs, who suggested the tax decrease, can only offer recommendations but do not offer legal advice.

At the March 10 regular meeting, Hughes said she tried to talk about the legality further, but was talked over by other council members. She said she believes the best practice would be to return the overpayments as soon as possible, even if it puts the borough into deeper financial trouble.

“If we do this, we could be open to a class-action lawsuit,” Hughes said. “It has to be returned within three years of the date (of collection).”

Concerns also were voiced by borough residents, such as Fran Morrison, a 50-year taxpayer. She attended the March 10 meeting in hopes of raising her own concerns about the plan, such as what happens if someone moves out of the borough before being reimbursed.

“I wanted to voice my opinion, but a cop kept talking over me,” Morrison said. “At one point, he asked me to leave because I was being ‘disrespectful.’”

Another point of concern for Morrison was the decision by the council at the March 10 meeting to approve an ordinance that increased wages for council members and the mayor.

“If they’re so poor, how can they give themselves a raise?” she said.

Bray said she believes the raise to be minuscule in comparison to other costs in the borough.

“It comes out to $35 a month for each of us,” Bray said. “It doesn’t go into effect for current members unless they’re reelected at the end of their term.”

All but two members of the council will be up for reelection in 2026. Bray and Councilman Gary Wray will end their term in 2027.

An executive session will start at 6 p.m. Tuesday for the council to discuss the issue. Immediately after, the council will hold the special meeting to finalize the decision.