HARRISBURG -- Yes, Virginia, there really is going to be property tax relief from slot machines this year -- a statewide average of $190 per homeowner.

The biggest winners in southwestern Pennsylvania are property owners in the Washington School District, each of whom will see $406 shaved from the tax bills they get this summer.

In second and third places are Central Greene and Southeastern Greene, where taxes will be reduced by $362 and $348 respectively. They're followed by the Aliquippa School District, with $347 in tax relief, and Big Beaver Falls Area, at $345.

At the opposite end of the tax-relief scale is Ligonier Valley, where tax bills will drop by only $68 per homeowner; Mars Area, at $69 per property owner; and Hempfield Area, at $87 each.

Tax relief totals vary from district to district based on the amount of taxable property in a district and the average income of taxpayers in a district.

Gov. Ed Rendell has been criticized for the length of time it's taken to bring about tax reductions from gambling. He's been forecasting tax benefits since the Legislature legalized casinos in July 2004.

Two weeks ago, Mr. Rendell estimated that $169 would be the average amount of tax relief this year for homeowners in 500 school districts. He revised that figure upward yesterday.

In the 501st school district, Philadelphia, relief will be in the form of lower wage taxes rather than lower property taxes. City officials say their priority is cutting the wage tax, which averages about 4 percent for residents and nonresidents who work in the city, because that tax has been a deterrent to people moving in.

Statewide, the biggest school district winner is Chester-Upland, just west of Philadelphia, where each homeowner will get $623. Chester-Upland doesn't have much taxable property and has had problems with low student test scores.

Second in tax relief is Allentown City School District in the Lehigh Valley, with a $537 reduction per homeowner. In third place statewide is the York School District, at $522.

Homeowners will not get checks for the tax relief, said state Department of Education spokesman Mike Race. The state will send each school district a lump sum from revenue generated by slots, and the district will lower each resident's tax bill before sending it out. The bills will state specifically how much lower they are because of the gaming revenue.

The total available this year for slots-funded property tax relief for homeowners is $613 million. Mr. Rendell predicted that within a few years, after all 14 slots casinos are up and running, at least $1 billion a year will be generated for property tax relief. That will average out to $300 a year per taxpayer, he said.

In addition to the $613 million for homeowners and farm owners, another $173 million will be used for rent rebates and tax relief for lower-income residents 65 and older.

"This will make a real difference to hard-working Pennsylvania homeowners," he said.

So far there are seven casinos in operation, six at racetracks and one free-standing in the Poconos.

Pittsburgh casino builder Don Barden hopes to open his $600 million Majestic Star casino on the North Shore in May 2009.