Greensburg Salem school officials are planning to keep taxes steady as part of the district’s preliminary 2022-23 budget.
While the board won’t adopt a final budget until June, business manager Joan Wehner said initial indications are expenditures and revenues each will increase to about $48.7 million, up from $48.1 million in the current spending plan.
To achieve those balanced figures, the district would need to dip further into its fund balance — drawing upon $942,000 next school year, compared with $692,000 this year.
Responding to a question from board President Jeff Metrosky, Wehner confirmed the fund balance would be applied solely to recurring district costs and would not be used for capital improvements.
“Major budget drivers are the increase in health care rates, and gas and electric rates are increasing,” Wehner said. “All insurances are increasing.”
If Greensburg Salem holds the line on taxes, property owners would continue to pay an 89.72-mill rate.
Even without a tax increase, local revenue — which accounts for nearly 53% of all district revenues — is projected to increase $100,000 to $25.2 million.
State funding, which represents about 41% of district revenue, is expected to increase $200,000 to $19.9 million.
Superintendent Ken Bissell said the district is paying about $2.1 million in tuition for students who attend cyber charter schools. Those students number 128 this year, down from 158 last year. Bissell said he would like to see it decrease further.
“That’s a huge hit for the district, and we’re really trying to focus on, instructionally, how we can get (cyber students) back to the classroom,” he said.
Greensburg Salem participates in a regional e-academy, but the district must pay if students take online courses offered by instructors from other schools — costing $215,000.
“We want to do it with our teachers, in-house, and save the taxpayers money,” Bissell said.
