6 days ago
Schuylkill Haven school board unanimously approves 2.4 mill tax increase
Taxes are increasing for Schuylkill Haven Area School District residents. On Wednesday the school board unanimously approved a $26.4 million 2025-26 budget with a 2.4-mill increase.
This brings the district's tax rate to 46.9 mills, meaning a tax bill of $4,690 for a property assessed at $100,000.
Kimberly Umphrey, district manager, said at a meeting in May that an increase in state homestead/farmstead funding would provide another $49 in tax savings to the average property owner. Factoring in homestead/farmstead exclusions, the average homeowner will see an annual tax increase of $42.
The budget includes a $2.5 million deficit, with the spending attributed to rising contractual salary, benefit and health insurance expenses and increasing costs for cyber charter schools and special education outplacement, officials said.
'This administrative team will do everything in our power to chip away at that deficit,' Fitzpatrick said in May. 'We do every year. We've already begun conversations about how we can share (staff) positions, how we can bring more kids back out of placement.'
Last year's budget included a $1.7 million deficit, which was reduced to $320,000.
Schuylkill Haven has $5.4 million in its reserve fund balance.
