RADNOR — Radnor property owners can expect a tax hike this fall if the school board approves the final 2023-2024 budget that was unveiled this week.
During a school board meeting Tuesday night, Radnor School District officials outlined details of its budget for the upcoming school year.
“We are recommending a 2.78 percent tax increase which would take the millage rate from 14.2371 mills up to 14.6329 mills,” said Brian Pawling, business administrator for the school district.
For a property with an assessed value of $250,000, the increase would represent a $99 increase.
Pawling also provided data on property values of $500,000, $723,335, $1 million and $1.5 million. The proposed tax hike would represent increases of $198, $286, $396 and $594 for each of those property values.
According to Pawling, 84 percent of the district revenues come from local sources, such as property taxes.
The state kicks in about 14 percent, and the federal government pays about two percent.
For outgoing expenses, salaries and benefits make up the largest chunk of the budget at 44 percent for the former and another 29 percent for the latter.
“That’s 73 percent of our budget that goes to salaries and benefits, which you would assume – we’re a service-based organization – we provide a service of educating students, so our greatest resource in our district is our people and what we invest in our people to educate students,” Pawling said.
Pawling said the budget maintains the current class size recommendations.
According to Pawling, the budget includes a $1 million transfer to the district’s capital reserve fund for upcoming capital improvement projects that have already been identified through the district facilities study.
They also plan to replace four of the district’s diesel buses with propane as part of the regular bus replacement cycle.
School board member Lydia Solomon expressed support for the budget.
“I just want to reiterate what I said in the finance committee meeting, which is my absolute delight with this budget,” Solomon said. “I’m thrilled that we’re coming in at less than three percent, and I think that it’s important to acknowledge really everybody in the district that contributed to this really strong financial position, and that includes staff and the teachers and the various bargaining units for being reasonable and so that allows us to come in with a fair budget that does not overburden our taxpayers, and so I think you know people in Radnor expect excellent education and they’re getting it, and they’re getting it at a fair price, and so this is a win-win-win and so just you know I was really, really thrilled to see this budget.”
Under the school district’s schedule, the final budget will be presented at the May finance committee meeting. A vote on the district’s final budget is expected at the May 30 board meeting. The budget runs from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.
