No New Taxes in School Budget
By ANNE HOLLIDAY
WESB/WBRR News Director
For the ninth year in a row, the Bradford Area School Board will not be raising taxes.
District Business Manager Kathy Kelly made the announcement during Monday’s School Board meeting, adding that there will be no reduction in programs.
School District Superintendent Sandra Romanowski added that although they’re not eliminating programs, they continue to evaluate programs.
“If we have a program that’s costing a lot of money and not getting much of a result, and we can’t students’ performance increasing from that, or we can’t see long-term impact from those programs, we will shift money,” she said.
“We will move it to where we think it will best serve students,” she added.
In her presentation to the board, Kelly noted that the districts revenue locally, and from the federal government, is down a total of $224,000.
She said the state share has continued to increase, primarily because “Governor (Ed) Rendell … (has) fought very hard for public education.”
She said with a new governor coming in next year, she’s not sure what the commitment to education will be at the state level.
Kelly also noted that salaries and benefits account for 68.4 percent of the budget and “that’s extremely low for a school district.”
She said salaries and benefits consume up to 75 percent of other districts’ budgets.
Romanowski also pointed out that the capital projects that have been done over the last few years typically would not have been done unless the district floated a bond issue.
“We have done it actually paying cash as we go along and not saddling the taxpayers with anything, which is, I think, significant,” Romanowski said.
Kelly also wanted to mention that, although she is the business manager, she receives input from the administration, teachers, support staff and everyone else in the district when putting the budget together.
“It isn’t me doing this (not raising taxes),” Kelly said. “It’s not one person doing this. It’s everyone, and I hope the community realizes this, but we’ve got a wonderful team working here.”
WESB/WBRR News Director
For the ninth year in a row, the Bradford Area School Board will not be raising taxes.
District Business Manager Kathy Kelly made the announcement during Monday’s School Board meeting, adding that there will be no reduction in programs.
School District Superintendent Sandra Romanowski added that although they’re not eliminating programs, they continue to evaluate programs.
“If we have a program that’s costing a lot of money and not getting much of a result, and we can’t students’ performance increasing from that, or we can’t see long-term impact from those programs, we will shift money,” she said.
“We will move it to where we think it will best serve students,” she added.
In her presentation to the board, Kelly noted that the districts revenue locally, and from the federal government, is down a total of $224,000.
She said the state share has continued to increase, primarily because “Governor (Ed) Rendell … (has) fought very hard for public education.”
She said with a new governor coming in next year, she’s not sure what the commitment to education will be at the state level.
Kelly also noted that salaries and benefits account for 68.4 percent of the budget and “that’s extremely low for a school district.”
She said salaries and benefits consume up to 75 percent of other districts’ budgets.
Romanowski also pointed out that the capital projects that have been done over the last few years typically would not have been done unless the district floated a bond issue.
“We have done it actually paying cash as we go along and not saddling the taxpayers with anything, which is, I think, significant,” Romanowski said.
Kelly also wanted to mention that, although she is the business manager, she receives input from the administration, teachers, support staff and everyone else in the district when putting the budget together.
“It isn’t me doing this (not raising taxes),” Kelly said. “It’s not one person doing this. It’s everyone, and I hope the community realizes this, but we’ve got a wonderful team working here.”
.jpg)
Comments