Tax increase moves forward with KCSD 2024-25 budget, final adoption June 13

By Christopher Miller

BALD EAGLE TOWNSHIP – Barely passing the school board vote Thursday evening, the 2024-2025 proposed final budget was adopted with Lynch, Scaff, Baldino, and Cannon being the nay votes. The final budget will be adopted at the next voting session on June 13.

Through various activities to reduce the number of expenses, Joni MacIntyre, KCSD Business Manager, was able to shed expenses by approximately $1.92 million. These reductions were found in capital reserves, staff attrition/resignation, insurance, charter/cyber school reserve, substitutes expenses, budgetary reserves, and district-wide software, bringing the May shortfall to only $1.16 million.

The recommendation of a partial tax increase of 3.55% remains, in order to decrease the budget shortfall.

Speaking during the Visitors portion of the meeting, taxpayer and county resident Charles Hagar, Jr., who mentioned that his father was a teacher at Lock Haven High School for the majority of his career, spoke of “fiscal responsibility” and “living within your means.”

“When I was growing up I had a paper route which taught me fiscal responsibility and living within my means, and I do not feel like KCSD is living within their means,” he said. “You are doing a great disservice to the taxpayers when potential new business is looking to come into the community and they look at the infrastructure in place, and the quality of the education in the schools for their workforce.”

The final budget is currently available for public inspection on the district website, and is expected to be presented for adoption as a Final Budget at the school board meeting to be held at 6:30 p.m. on June 13, 2024. The budget may be amended before or after final adoption.

If an individual is unable to access the Proposed Final Budget on the District website, a printed copy may be obtained by contacting the following individual in the following manner:
Joni MacIntyre, Business Manager
Phone: 570-893-4900 x 2312
Email: jmacintyre@kcsd.k12.pa.us
Fax: 570-893-4923