Greensburg Salem tax increase is less than hike recommended by business manager

Greensburg Salem school board members voted Wednesday night to raise taxes by 2.5 mills to a total of 92.22 mills, and use around $380,000 from the district’s reserves to balance the $51.5 million 2024-2025 district budget.

The 2.5 mill increase, netting the district around $588,000 in new revenue, was an alternate suggestion, chosen by the board 8 to 1 over business manager Allison Willis’s initial recommendation to raise taxes by 4.06 mills.

The board members debated how to address the district’s deficit of just under $950,000, which had been reduced from the initial nearly $2.4 million deficit in the preliminary budget.

Related:

• Greensburg Salem preliminary budget contains nearly $2.4M shortfall

Board members Emily Miller and Kacey Byrne-Houser were the only ones to vote for the initial proposal from Willis. Miller also voted against the revised 2.5 mill increase.

The $380,000 used from the district’s reserves matches the amount that the district usually transfers each year from the general fund to the capital projects fund for facility improvement, Willis said. There is currently about $500,000 in the capital fund.

One mill brings in around $230,000 for the district. The district’s current millage is 89.72 mills.

Miller said she was concerned that the 2.5 mill increase did not leave the district enough leeway in case an expected $1.6 million increase in state funds for Greensburg Salem did not end up being approved in the state budget.

She offered to support a proposed compromise from board member Brian Conway that would have set the increase at 3 mills, but that option did not come up for a vote.

“It was out of a very abundance of caution that I voted the way that I did. I don’t want to dig into our budget in order to balance it,” she said. “I feel that that’s imprudent, and I want to have just a little bit of extra there. That’s my main concern. I don’t want the district to be hurt because we are at 100% of whatever they have (promised).”

Board member Frank Gazze said he felt the 2.5 mill increase would be best for the taxpayers, especially when factoring in current inflationary increases in bills and groceries.

“What we’re trying to do is use a little bit of our money to not have a huge impact on our taxpayers,” he said. “It’s painful to have to pass on any tax increase, but to keep it at a minimum is what I’m trying to do.”

According to Willis, the average taxpayer with a median assessed value of $17,200 would see a $43 a year increase in taxes with a 2.5 mill tax jump.

If they are approved for the Homestead-Farmstead Exclusion, they would get an additional $38 dollars off of their tax bill, making their net annual increase only $5. A little under 5,800 properties will qualify for the tax relief, she said.

This story has been updated to correct the vote of board members.