JM school board votes to stay within tax limit set by state
JEFFERSON — Jefferson-Morgan School Board voted Tuesday to not raise taxes by more than what is permitted by the state index, but directors said they may look into doing so for the next fiscal year.
The state index, established by the Taxpayers Relief Act enacted in 2006, considers a district’s aid ratio by calculating how much it may raise its real estate tax rate without approval. For Jefferson-Morgan, the index is set at 2.8 percent, according to the district’s business manager, Jennifer Foringer. At that percentage, if the board votes to raise taxes during the budget meeting in June, they would only be able to raise it by .59 mill. The current millage rate for the school district is 23.65 mills and residents with property assessed at $50,000 currently pay about $1,183 annually in taxes.
Before approving the resolution, board member Jon Hildebrand asked whether the district would still be able to seek a referendum to exceed the state index if the school officials determine they need more money for building improvements or other expenses. Foringer said the board would have had to approve a tentative budget in December.
Hildebrand suggested while no one wants to raise taxes, the board should be prepared next year with an early budget as a preventive measure for building improvements or hiring more teachers as needed.
Also on Tuesday, the board received its annual audit report for the year ending June 30, 2012.
The report was presented by Charlie Rupert of Cypher and Cypher of Pittsburgh. Rupert gave the board a good “unqualified opinion,” noting that there were no instances of noncompliance.
According to the report, the district has a fund balance of $1.4 million.
$171,000 of the balance is prepaid for bills; $500,000 is committed to post-retirement benefits; $20,000 is assigned funds for incoming bills and athletics; and $725,000 of the balance is unassigned funds that are available for use.
The unassigned funds represent 6 percent of the operating budget. Rupert advised that the school officials look into raising that amount between eight and 12 percent in case of any unanticipated costs, such as a broken boiler.
“You really don’t want to go much lower than where you currently are,” he said.
Rupert also noted that the fund balance has declined in recent years. The cafeteria took a loss of $86,000 last year, but Rupert said not all of that loss was unexpected.
“Due to food costs, salaries and benefits, you were budgeted for that loss,” he said.
In other business, the district voted to take bids for an architect to conduct a feasibility study on the junior/senior high school.
Superintendent Donna Furnier said the architect will mainly focus on the roof, which has been leaking, especially when the weather fluctuates. In addition to the roof, the architect will look at the rest of the infrastructure of the building for what Furnier called a “needs assessment.”
The building was built in 1955, and was last renovated in 1985.
The next board meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 19 in the elementary school library.