The Herald, Sharon, PA Published Thursday, May 15, 2003

6-mill
tax hike
confronts
board


Stunned by budget,
director says

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By Jeff Greenburg
Herald Staff Writer

Sharpsville Area school directors are scheduled to vote on a tentative budget for the 2003-04 school year that could carry a tax hike of 6 mills, or about 11.1 percent, when they meet at 7 p.m. Monday in Seventh Street School.

Citing rising health-care costs and retirements as the major reasons for the hike, directors will vote on a proposed $11.46 million budget that's about $380,000, or 3.4 percent, higher than this year's, according to Superintendent Dr. Derry L. Stufft.

Retirement costs are going up $150,000 and health care costs $330,000 next year, Stufft said, accounting for more than the 3.4 percent increase.

"I think most people are going to be absolutely stunned given the current economic climate," Director Donna Murray said. "I know I was."

If approved this month and in a final vote at June's meeting, real estate taxes would increase to 60 mills under the new assessment ratio of 100 percent of a property's 1970 market value. A mill is $1 for every $1,000 of assessed value.

In 2001, county commissioners changed the ratio from one-third of a property's 1970 market value to 100 percent. Thus under the old ratio the levy would be 180 mills, up 18 mills from 2002-03.

"I find it totally unacceptable," Mrs. Murray said. "We've lost all of the major manufacturing bases. We just don't have those bases anymore and you can't get money if there isn't any."

The board raised taxes 7 mills, or 21 based on the old ratio, over the last four years, including 1 mill a year ago, primarily to help cover the cost of the elementary building project.

Stufft said, however, the district hasn't budgeted anything yet this year from state coffers "because we assume we're not going to have that by the time we pass our budget, so that's not factored in there."

What that amounts to, Stufft continued, is about a $90,000 increase from last year's total state funding of $5.68 million, which he said would still account for only 1è of the 6 mills.

"We tried to keep our programs and personnel in place," Stufft said. "And we did not want to, at this point, do anything that would hurt our kids or have class sizes that are ballooning because of not replacing positions of people that are retired."

Mrs. Murray said she suggested three areas at the work session where the district might save money: eliminating the curriculum director, or assistant superintendent, position that's currently open since the departure of Dr. Douglas Hazlett, who resigned to accept a position at another school district; across-the-board wage freezes; and a bigger health benefit co-pay for everyone.

Mrs. Murray said she would also like to see directors in the future have more time to review the budget, which is initially presented in early May.

"They're asking for the adoption of a tentative budget at this meeting and it's way too soon," she said. "I don't think we've had ample time to review it."

In addition to the budget crunch, directors Monday are also expected to pass an amended eligibility policy for students in extracurricular and co-curricular activities.

The policy, voted on last month, originally called for students to be ineligible for one week if they were failing two major subjects or classes that totaled two credits.

Stufft said the amended policy calls for use of the PIAA standard -- the school's policy for the last five years that grants students eligibility as long as they're passing four classes -- for the first three weeks of each nine-week grading period. For the final six weeks of those respective grading periods, the district would then apply the stricter "2-F" standard.

You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Jeff Greenburg at:
jgreenburg@sharonherald.com.



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