Administrators propose increase in school tax

The administration in the Chartiers Valley School District is proposing a 0.5462-mill tax increase for the 2021-22 school year, which would amount to approximately a $55 increase per every $100,000 of assessed property value.

District Superintendent Johannah Vanatta and director of finance and operations Pat Connolly proposed the increase at Tuesday’s finance committee meeting.

Ms. Connolly said that as the 2021-22 preliminary budget stands now, expenditures are expected to amount to $72,710,325, while revenues are estimated at $72,142,464.

She said with the 0.5462 mill increase, there is still a shortfall, thus about $567,861 would have be used from the district’s fund balance to balance the budget.

The district’s current fund balance sits at about $2.9 million.

Ms. Connolly pointed out several of the district’s expenditures have increased for the 2021-22 school year including a 5% increase in health care, increases in retirement contributions and increases in charter school tuition.

Ms. Vanatta stressed that the budget is still in its “preliminary stage” and the administration will “continue to whittle away” at it to decrease expenditures within the next few months before the board votes on a final budget.

She also presented information on the relief funding the district has received as a result of the COVID- 19 pandemic. She reminded the board that the funds allocated to the district are grant funds and must be used for special purposes and needs related to COVID-19.

To date, Chartiers Valley has or will receive about $4.7 million in relief funds. That number includes about $2.7 million in the third round of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds, which is pending, as well as another pending $126,845 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency.

Thus far, Chartiers Valley has received $292,307 in the first round of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds, which was used on substitutes for the 2020-21 school year, and about $1.3 million in ESSER II funds.

Ms. Vanatta said the ESSER II funds will be split between the current school year and the 2021-22 year for things such as long-term substitute teachers, online learning coverage, curriculum updates, summer remediation, professional development and technology.

Additionally, the district received a grant of $247,719 from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, which was used to purchase Chromebooks for intermediate school students and iPads for primary school students.

The school board will hold another finance committee meeting on May 4.

The proposed budget will be on public display starting May 14 with a vote on the final budget set for June 15.