Q&A with State Rep. Joe Webster on Patch on November 12

The Lower Providence Patch will host a virtual town hall with state Representative Joe Webster (D), who’s represented residents of the Lower Providence area for the past year.

This virtual town will follow a Q&A format, and will focus on property taxes. Whether you are a senior facing increasing property tax rates on a fixed budget, a young couple looking to buy their first home, or anywhere in between - Representative Webster is looking forward to answering your questions.

Posts that are structured in a non-question format will most likely not be addressed. Rep. Webster is also prepared to discuss issues besides property taxes, as long as the questions are relevant to the Lower Providence community.

Rep. Webster will interact with his constituents on Patch’s hyperlocal forum known as “Neighbor Post,” which means all questions must follow our community guidelines.

What’s a virtual town hall?

A virtual town hall is just like a regular town hall, except the entire event will be held online. Instead of asking a question into a microphone in a crowded room, you’ll type your questions on Patch’s Neighbor Post forum. Feel free to ask a local question, or reply to one of your neighbors, in order to get familiar with the platform.

You’ll need to sign up for a Patch profile in order to participate in the town hall.

What are the rules of a virtual town hall?

Like any town hall, the speaker won’t be able to answer every question due to time constraints. However, rude behavior is an easy way to ensure your question goes unanswered. Even the most impassioned disagreement can be presented in a respectful manner.

Offensive posts will be immediately deleted, along with the user who posted it. For more information on our rules, make sure to consult Patch’s community guidelines.

We also ask that you keep your questions under 100 words. While not explicitly part of our community guidelines, we always encourage concise posts as they tend to attract more replies from your neighbors.

Why is the virtual town hall focused on property taxes?

Property tax reform is an issue that Rep. Joe Webster cares deeply about because he knows, as a Lower Providence resident himself, how much it impacts the community. It also happens to be a topic of great concern for Lower Providence.

“In the 1970 – 1971 school year, (the state) paid 54% of the cost of basic education. In 2017 – 18, we are down to funding 33% of basic education at the state level.

These drastic state-level cuts to education funding have resulted in the property tax hikes that we have been experiencing in our local communities.

I’m committed to advancing the excellence of our schools while working towards a funding formula in which the state pays its fair share in order to help address the rising cost of property taxes.” Rep. Webster states.

How do I join the town hall?

Anyone who lives in the Lower Providence area is welcome to join the town hall. You’ll just need an account on Patch in order to begin posting.