The purpose of this article was to present the results of a study that analyzed Pennsylvania local school boards' taxing authority, pre- and post-enactment of Special Session Act 1, "The Taxpayer Relief Act," in 2006, in terms of its percent share of school districts' total budget in order to better understand the impact of the new limits, in general, and, specifically, with regard to state-mandated contributions to the state pension fund for school district employees. Prior to this act, school districts' authority was unrestricted. Act 1 changed all of this, requiring districts to seek local voter approval and/or an exception from the state department of education to exceed state-imposed limits. At the same time, the state imposed significant increases in local school district employee pension contributions. A third complicating factor was the economic recession of 2007-2009 that greatly affected state and local revenues, followed by a weak economic recovery.