School Board contemplates possible tax increase for 2024-2025

By Christopher Miller

BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – May 9 is the day the Keystone Central School Board will be adopting a proposed final budget, with the final budget being formally adopted in mid-June for the 2025-2025 school year.

Due to updated healthcare numbers presented by Business Manager Joni MacIntyre, the general fund budget is moving “in the wrong direction” due to insurance claim benefit increases of 18.1% as of July 1. This means that the fiscal year-to-date 2023-2024 claims are currently sitting at 118.3% of expected with a deficit of -$848,138.

“About 39% of the members on our health insurance plan have two chronic health problems or more,” MacIntyre reported to the school board members. “The current membership in the health plan sits at 523 members, and 10 of them have reached the $1,000,000 in claims Stop Loss Insurance which we pay up to that million, then the rest goes to the consortium for payment, with the potential for eight more members to reach the million dollar threshold by the end of the fiscal year.”

Stop Loss insurance, by definition, is an insurance that protects insurers against large claims. They take effect after a certain threshold, in KCSD’s case $1,000,000, has been exceeded in claims.

The 523 members that are currently on the district’s health insurance plan are a combination of current employees, retirees, spouses, and dependents.

The reported figures left the school board members scratching their heads and asking next, “what is recommended that we do?”

While the Business Office is waiting on final numbers from attrition like those leaving their positions with the district or retiring, the current recommendation is the 3.55% partial tax increase for 2024/2025.

“The impact that this will have is that it will help maintain level tax increases, maintain a fund balance for revenue generation, will generate approximately an extra $930,073 annually, but it will increase the taxes on the average assessed home value by about $55 per year,” the shared slide show presentation reported.

The tax increase is due to expenses such as the rising cost of healthcare, matching grant funds, and funding for Capital Improvements.

In mill rate comparison, the district has the 4th lowest in the intermediate unit school districts.

Discussion among the school board members included the mention of a hiring freeze, continued scrutiny of district expenses, and blaming legislators in Harrisburg for “failing to do their job and fund public education like they should be.”

School board member Tom Cannon said that “it feels like we are punishing the citizens of our district by taking money out of their wallet”.

The board vote on adopting the proposed budget for 2024-2025 will be at the next Voting Meeting on Thursday, May 9.