Board approves 2.4% tax increase
Daniel Boone School District property taxes will increase $75 for every $100,000 of assessed property value, effective July 1.
The school board unanimously approved on June 17 the district’s 2019-20 balanced general fund budget of $59,973,084, which includes the tax levy from 30.834 to 31.584 mills.
Board member Kevin Stroble was absent from the meeting.
Taxpayers will pay $3,158 for every $100,000 of assessed property value.
The new tax rate is a 2.4 percent increase — less than the 3.7 percent increase in the board’s preliminary budget (released for public review in May).
Former school board member Richard Martino said any tax increase is more than the district’s senior citizens can afford.
“You have declining enroll
ment, but you are adding personnel,” said Martino, adding, “You are continually putting last the senior citizens in this district.”
Senior citizens are on fixed, Social Security incomes, who may receive a 1.5 to two percent cost-ofliving increase, he said.
“The average monthly social security income is $2,800, minus property taxes. One-sixth of their income goes to paying property taxes.”
Board President Jeffrey Scott said declining enrollment resulted in teacher furloughs, which were offset by the hiring of instructional aides.
“There were some personnel cuts,” said Scott, “and we only took positions that can help. Although there were no savings [from the furloughs] — there was an offset and we feel the money is wellspent.”
“We started with a zero balance budget approach,” said Finance Committee Chairman Michael D. Wolfe.
“We realized those savings and included them in the budget, such as retirements, and shifted people around while maintaining appropriate class sizes. We didn’t replenish positions we didn’t need due to declining enrollment.”
Scott said the board “pulled all the zero budget levers that will save the district the most money.”
Board members said they have outsourced food services, custodial services, buildings and grounds services, cut middle school foreign languages, refinancing debt, transportation savings, reduced encore class times, closed the Birdsboro Elementary Center, and the budget is expected to be in the negative in two years.
“PSERS (Public School Employees Retirement System) is going up, healthcare, and other district expenses. There are no big ticket items anymore, but to reduce teachers,” said Scott.
He said the administration is positive that the district is moving education forward.
“We have an obligation to provide the best education that we can — and to reach all students,” said member Aaron Durso, “but how to balance this year’s budget and get to the next, because we all know we run out of money.”
Scott said the district had a six year period when there was no tax increase.
“I’m quite sure that the board was proud of it, but it created a problem for us — this board — now all we can do is cut staff,” said Scott.
“They should have raised at a very reasonable — .1 or .2 mills, and there would be another mill in the budget now, and bought us another two years, four years total. There are no more levers to pull. We can balance the budget this year, and probably the next year, but then a new board, and it will be for them to decide.”
The board unanimously approved to terminate the employment of George Schmidt, effective close of business June 30, due to elimination of the Director of Athletics position.
They then appointed Eileen Schmidt as the district’s new director of athletics and activities, effective July 8, with a salary of $81,000.
Schmidt, originally from Berks County, was most recently softball coach at the University of Virginia.
She was previously marketing and public relations specialist for the University of Virginia Health System.
Amy Hicks, director of the Daniel Boone Education Association, thanked the board for eliminating the part time athletics director position, creating a new full time position, and also for hiring instructional aides.
“This one cut to this one position has had a widereaching impact — a negative impact. And many of you stated that you are committed to take the necessary steps to restore what has been lost.”
She cited six years of cuts — to full day kindergarten, elementary encores, middle school foreign languages, most instructional aides, and many furloughed teachers.
“Each of these cuts has clearly had negative impacts on our educational programming and student achievement. This is unfortunately clear when seeing the steady decline in our school performance profile scores over these same past six years.”