HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Pennsylvania appeals court has reversed the sale of a widow’s home that was triggered by a tax bill for $6.30.

A Commonwealth Court panel Thursday said the auction sale of Eileen Battisti’s $280,000 home outside Aliquippa in western Pennsylvania wasn’t valid because the Beaver County Tax Claim Bureau didn’t offer her an installment payment plan as required by state law.

The court opinion says Battisti struggled to cope with household finances after her husband’s death in 2004.

The sale was held after the tax bill grew with interest and costs to $235 by late 2011, when the property was sold for about $116,000.


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