A proposal by Sharpsville council for a tax-abatement program for home and business owners who improve or add onto their properties could have statewide implications.

Council Thursday talked about their idea with state Rep. Mike Gruitza, Hermitage, D-7th District.

Gruitza said he could introduce a bill to allow tax abatements for improvements to existing structures, but the state constitution would limit such a program to two years. Anything longer than that would require an amendment to the state constitution, he said.

"I'd take a two-year program. Two years is better than nothing," said Gary "Gus" Grandy, council vice-president and chairman of the business relations and development committee.

The tax-abatement program, if approved by the Legislature, would cover county, school district and municipal taxes and would apply only to the improved portion of the property.

Grandy has been talking for several months about implementing a five-to-10-year tax abatement for home and business owners who want to improve their properties.

An abatement would encourage people who may be afraid of a higher tax bill to make improvements, Grandy said. He said it could benefit landlords or anyone who wants to make home improvements, and encourage businesses to stay in the borough.

In September, council wrote to Gruitza to ask him to support a tax-abatement program because the borough does not have the authority under state law to implement one on its own.

The abatement should cover county and school district taxes, as well as municipal ones, because abating municipal taxes only wouldn't provide much of a break, Gruitza said.

If he would introduce such a bill and if the Legislature approves it and the governor signs it into law, the tax-abatement program would be available for all municipalities in Pennsylvania, Gruitza said.

Currently, tax abatements are on the books for newly Ryan, Sharon council President Fred Hoffman and Hermitage commissioner President William Scanlon backed Rendell in four nearly identical news releases.

"I am endorsing Ed Rendell for governor today because he has displayed a real compassion for people and an understanding of the issues that affect Pennsylvanians," said Morocco, who has coordinated Rendell's Mercer County campaign along with former county Democratic Party Chairman Dick Miller of Greenville.

"Farrell is a distressed community, dependent on new economic development initiatives. Ed's thoughtful and practical plans to revitalize Pennsylvania's communities are essential for our community and our state's future," Morocco added.

Ryan, Hoffman and Scanlon said they are endorsing Rendell because he "is the only candidate who has ever created a single job, cut a single tax, put a single police officer on the streets or taken a single criminal off them." All four leaders touted Rendell's plans to "revitalize our state's mid-sized and smaller communities, protect our communities and reform our education system," the releases said.

"I am enormously pleased that (they) have endorsed my campaign," said Rendell, the former mayor of Philadelphia.

"I am confident that with (their) help, my campaign will be successful and together we can make the change our state needs to make it great once again," Rendell added.

Everyone isn't lining behind Rendell, however. Some believe Casey, the state auditor general, has plenty of support in Mercer County and can hold off the surging Rendell statewide.

Mark Longietti of Farrell, a Democrat State Committeeman who chairs the group's Northwest Caucus, said Casey received "overwhelming support" from the state committee and regional caucus earlier this year.

Longietti, who says he along with county Democratic Chairman Robert Lark, is a Casey backer, said Casey has also received strong support from teachers and blue-collar workers. "And many people in this area will remember his father (former Gov. Robert P. Casey) coming to the (Shenango) valley to save Sharon Steel," Longietti added.

Rendell is the slated guest for a luncheon in Hermitage at Hickory Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6166 on April 30. It will be his second campaign stop in the valley in two months.

Casey has yet to make a campaign stop in Mercer County this year.