53 Pa. Stat. § 17038
The qualified voters of the said city, shall * * * elect one person, who shall be denominated receiver of taxes, to serve for two years. * * * He shall give bond and be sworn or affirmed to perform his duty in like manner as the city treasurer. He shall collect and receive all taxes and public assessments payable and receivable within the limits of the said city, and for that purpose shall have and exercise all the powers conferred by law in that behalf and shall have the assistance of the necessary clerks, to afford proper facilities to all citizens to pay their taxes at all business hours of the day. It shall be the duty of the city commissioners to place the duplicates of taxes in the possession of the said receiver of taxes as early as practicable, in the year for which the taxes shall be assessed. * * * The said receiver shall immediately after the first day of December, annually give public notice in at least four of the public newspapers of said city for ten days, to all persons who shall have omitted to pay their taxes, or pay them before the first day of January, and that if not paid by that time a warrant will issue to collect the same: * * * Provided, That if any person against whom such taxes shall have been assessed shall make affidavit that he did not own the premises, for which such taxes were assessed, at the time they accrued and became a lien thereon, the said taxes shall be collected of the true owner thereof, or by proceedings to sell the premises by execution. And the said receiver of taxes shall furnish certificates of all taxes and claims which are a lien on real estate, and receive therefor twenty-five cents for each certificate, and five cents for each lien and claim certified.
53 P.S. § 17038