LAWRENCE: School tax rate to increase by 7 cents

By Lea Kahn,Staff Writer
   The Lawrence Township public school district’s proposed $67.5 million operating budget for 2013-14 was approved by the school board last week, clearing the way for the March 21 public hearing on the proposed spending plan.
   The Lawrence Township Board of Education will hold a public hearing on the proposed budget on March 21 at 7 p.m. in the Lawrence High School library — assuming that the Mercer County Superintendent of Schools approves the budget after reviewing it.
   The $67.5 million budget calls for a 7-cent increase in the school district property-tax rate, from $2.35 per $100 of assessed value to $2.42. The tax rate increase was proposed to be 6 cents, but school district officials had to factor in an additional $550,000 for the Affordable Care Act (otherwise known as Obamacare).
   The owner of a house assessed at the township average of $160,262 would pay $3,878 in property taxes for the $61.8 million tax levy to support the budget, which is a $112 increase. The increase in the tax levy is approximately 2.6 percent, which exceeds the 2-percent cap mandated by state law.
   But Business Administrator Thomas Eldridge said the school district can exceed the cap because it has tapped into its “cap bank.” The district did not use all of its allowable tax levy increases over the past few years. State law allowed it to “bank” the amount that was not raised, which is $3.7 million.
   At the school board’s special meeting March 5 to approve the proposed budget, Mr. Eldridge said the district received an additional $50,000 in state aid, but netted $3,000 after paying for state-mandated items. The district will receive $4 million in state aid for 2013-14.
   There has been no “material change” in the way the budget is divided up, he said. Salaries and benefits account for 78 percent of the spending, which has remained fairly steady over the past few years, he said. The proposed budget includes an additional $620,000 for benefits, which includes money for the Affordable Health Care Act.
   Mr. Eldridge said the number of staff members has grown during the past few years. For example, the district did not employ security guards until a few years ago. The district has had to hire different specialists in different areas to provide different levels of programs, he said. It has been able to absorb the increases in personnel and salaries by finding economies in other areas of the budget.
   ”We still do not know everything we need to know about the Affordable Care Act,” Mr. Eldridge said. He added that the district does know that it has to budget for 62 employees who are currently not covered by health insurance, but who will be covered when the law is phased in.
   A provision of the Affordable Care Act, which takes effect in 2014, requires employers who have 50 or more people on staff to offer healthcare coverage to employees who work an average of 30 hours or more per week — but who may not be considered full-time employees.
   Mr. Eldridge expressed concern about the impact of the Affordable Care Act on the companies that do business with the school district, such as the school bus transportation companies. The companies may try to “pass through” their increased costs for providing health care insurance for their employees through higher bids, he said.
   When school board President Laura Waters asked about the impact of the federal sequester, or budget cuts, that went into effect March 1, Mr. Eldridge replied that “we know the magnitude” of what the cuts would be, but it becomes an (educational) programming decision.
   The school district does not rely heavily on federal funding and if money is eliminated, it would be a matter of finding ways to do things differently with the money available, Mr. Eldridge said. The district does not use the federal dollars to hire teachers, he added.
   School board member Michael Horan said the proposed budget is “tight.” Many of the costs are out of the school district’s control, such as special education costs, sequestration and the impact of the Affordable Care Act, he said.
   ”It definitely weighs on me. I definitely want to hear from the public on that. I want people to understand where we are at this point, what it would mean if we had to look at (making) cuts. We need to be very clear (and) explain the costs,” Mr. Horan said.
   When the meeting was opened to the public, township resident Charles Dismukes raised concerns about the impact of potential program cuts — especially to the gifted and talented program. He urged the school board to consider that all children have “special” needs.
   Those who are enrolled in the gifted and talented program may be at the “top end of the (educational) spectrum,” but they need help as well, Mr. Dismukes said. Those children, who have “unrecognized potential,” are as “needy” as special needs children, he said.
   Ms. Waters replied that it is important to understand how money is allocated to children with special needs and to children enrolled in the gifted and talented program. She said the school board “has less latitude than you assume” because of federal law, adding that “these are not decisions that the school board gets to make.”