Reynolds Area School District's financial situation is looking bleaker, thanks to unexpected health care bills and inadequate state funding projections.

Reynolds and five other local districts -- Sharon, Hermitage, Farrell, West Middlesex and Jamestown -- are part of the 12-member Western Pennsylvania Health Care Consortium.

The consortium, which provides health care coverage to member schools' employees, recently told members they would have to collectively come up with $4 million more than expected to balance the books for the fiscal year that ends June 30.

Reynolds' share of that is $400,000; Sharon's is $600,000; Hermitage's is $623,000; West Middlesex's is $247,000; Farrell's is $519,000; and Jamestown's is $162,000. The amount each district owes varies on the number of employees.

Reynolds Superintendent Dr. Anthony Trosan said he's been involved with a number of other school representatives to see how severe the situation is.

"No doubt it's more severe than anything we anticipated. It can no longer be put on the district or taxpayers," Trosan said. Reynolds is also struggling to dig itself out of a deficit built up over years of overspending.

During the school board meeting Tuesday, Trosan said the board will do all it can to change the way the district pays for health care.

"We're not the only school district going through this. Our most likely venue is reopening contracts," he said.

Finance Committee Chairman Maddox B. Stokes said the consortium bill would likely have some effect on the school's budget, but -- because of flat funding projections from the state -- he couldn't say specifically what it would be.

"We're looking at a very severe budget development season," Stokes said. "To say the next budget looks to be austere is a huge understatement."

Trosan said teaching supplies and books are a part of the life blood of the district but requests for those items should be returned to principals to be pared down.

"They should only forward things needed to run the classroom, nothing more. Literally."

Trosan said health care is one of the district's largest expenditures, second only to transportation, which costs more than $1 million per year.

"Transportation can't change," Stokes said. Trosan agreed.

"The district is 100 square miles and is not nicely shaped when it comes to transportation. It's not a place to cut back and we've already cut back on bus stops that could be cut," Trosan said.

The board met in executive session to discuss consortium problems, which they classified as personnel matters.