Berwick Area School District board approves final 2025–26 budget with 2.58% increase
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Summary
The Berwick Area School District Board of Education approved the final budget for the 2025–26 school year, adopting a plan the district described as a 2.58% increase over last year. Board members approved the budget by roll call.
The Berwick Area School District Board of Education approved the final budget for the 2025–26 school year at its meeting, adopting a plan the district described as a 2.58% increase over last year.
District staff member Christine, during the meeting, said the budget was “thoughtfully constructed” and that the district had “calculated all the costs in these very conservative numbers.” Staff reported total expenditures of $56,000,977,348,000 and said the figure represents a 2.58% increase over last year; the district described the change as lower than an earlier preliminary tax increase estimate of 3 percent and said, based on median assessed values, the tax effect would amount to roughly $30 in Columbia County and about $50 in Luzerne County as presented to the board.
The district identified salaries and health-care costs as the primary cost drivers for the year, reporting salary increases of about $1,500,000 and health-care increases of about $410,000. Staff also said charter-school tuition and cyber-charter costs have been trending upward in recent years and were reflected in the budget. Curriculum purchases and professional development were centralized under the curriculum department to reduce duplication, staff said, and utilities projections were reviewed as part of the planning process.
Board members approved the final budget by roll call. Votes recorded in the roll call for the budget adoption were: Missus Moyer — yes; Missus McCurlough — yes; Missus Reisinghow — yes; Mister Nestle — yes; Missus Oz — yes. The board adopted the budget as presented.
District staff noted state basic education and special-education subsidy figures were budgeted based on the prior year because the state budget had not yet been passed; staff said any state action could change those revenue assumptions. No additional formal actions tied to the budget were taken at the meeting.
The board also approved related consent items during the same session, including personnel items and routine financial motions.
(Reporting note: budget dollar figures were read into the record by district staff as stated above.)
