Summit Hill Borough Council gave tentative approval to its 2026 budget on Tuesday, which proposes that there be a 3-mill real estate tax rate increase.

The proposal passed unanimously, 6-0, with council member Lacey Gonzalez absent.

Alan Kruslicky, a member of council, said the tax hike is necessary because of “increases that we have no control over,” including health insurance and workers’ compensation premiums.

He said the rate amounts to about a 12% increase.

“Three is a big number,” he said, “and we did cut a lot out of the budget.”

Council President David Wargo agreed, saying that less than a 3-mill hike “would be financially irresponsible.”

“This is the minimum amount (of increase) we can do to make sure the town is financially solvent,” he said.

If the budget gets final approval, it will set the real estate tax rate at 22.75 mills, up from 19.75 mills. In addition, there is a 1.5 mill assessment for street lighting, which remains intact.

The council will hold a special meeting at 8 a.m. on Dec. 22 in the borough hall to vote on final approval.

“Nobody wants to do this,” Wargo said. He said he has been on the council 10 or 11 years and small increases should have been applied in the past so that such a large hike wouldn’t have happened all at once.

Borough resident Joan Morana asked the council, “What cost-cutting measures have you taken?”

Wargo offered her a copy of the budget to peruse.

“People can’t afford it,” she said, especially the senior citizens.

Wargo said the council has met at least eight times in the past several months in an effort to fine tune the budget.

Kruslicky said another reason the tax increase is needed is because grants that the borough had received in the past are no longer available.

“Unfortunately, we’ve got to start paying our own way,” he said.

Wargo said the council does have an option to reopen the budget in January. He said the new rates for health insurance haven’t been received yet.

The tax increase comes just after the borough council was forced to double its trash collection rates in 2026. Residents will pay $120 a quarter or $480 per year, which is double the amount they had been paying. The increase is because the costs of having the trash collected has nearly doubled.

The 2026 budget is balanced at $1,657,119. The 2025 budget was listed at $1,640,773.52.

Assessed property valuation actually decreased in 2025 in the borough. The valuation was listed at nearly 44.7 million on Nov. 9, 2025, versus $48.5 million on Oct. 1, 2024.