Wyoming Area presents proposed 2025-26 budget with $1.4 million worst-case shortfall; board adopts proposed final budget

William and Mary School Board President and district officials unveiled a proposed final general fund budget for the 2025-26 school year at the May 20 meeting, showing $47,312,083 in planned expenditures and multiple scenarios that could leave the district with a shortfall in the range of about $1.4 million under a worst-case assumption.

Albert B. Malone, the district's business consultant, described the presentation as a starting point and repeatedly emphasized the word "proposed." Malone said the baseline plan assumes no tax-rate increase and does not include the governor's budget proposals; under that scenario he showed a $1.4 million shortfall. He presented alternative property-tax index increases (2.75%, 3.5% and the maximum 5.5%) and the partial revenue effects if the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania adopts the governor's new funding allocations.

The presentation showed the district ending 2023-24 with about $4.2 million in fund balance and noted several drivers of the district's fiscal pressures: the end of ESSER federal pandemic funding; rising health-insurance costs (Malone cited a roughly 10.5% increase in health care costs); higher retirement costs; growing charter/cyber tuition and out-of-district special-education placements; and a long-term decline in assessed taxable value that has partially recovered in recent years.

Malone said the district expects revenues for 2025-26 near $45.8 million and projected expenses of $47.3 million in the base scenario. He told the board that after subsequent state funding and earned-income-tax receipts, preliminary estimates for the 2024-25 year may reduce the previously projected $1.2 million shortfall to roughly $300,000, but he cautioned a final number will be presented at the June meeting.

On charter and cyber tuition, the presentation noted a long-term increase in costs: about $668,000 in 2016-17 versus a projected roughly $2.7 million in 2024-25. Dr. John Pollard, the superintendent, estimated the number of students in cyber programs "about 35," a figure he gave during the discussion. A different speaker during board discussion referenced roughly 135 students in cyber placements; that comment was not tied to a named staff figure in the transcript.

Malone laid out how the governor's proposed increases would affect the district: roughly $83,009 in basic education aid and $75,009 in special education aid for Wyoming Area (per the presentation), plus a multi-year adequacy payment stream the district expects to receive in installments. He also showed a possible charter-cyber funding relief of about $381,000 under the governor's proposal.

At the end of the finance report the board voted to adopt the finance items and to advertise the proposed final general fund budget according to law. The proposed final budget as presented includes the $47,312,083 expenditures and reflects a tax rate the presentation described as 22.2112 mills for certain Luzerne County municipalities and 10.7973 mills for Exeter Township in Wyoming County, plus a $5 per-capita tax for persons over 21 in some municipalities, a 1% real-estate transfer tax, and a 12% wage (earned income) tax as described in the motion.

During the roll call on the finance report, four members recorded “no” votes specifically on item 13 (the proposed final budget line): Ketchmarski, Dutera, Campeni, and Del Borigi. Other voting members recorded “yes” on the finance package; the motion passed.

Malone and the administration told the board they will return in June with updated 2024-25 closing numbers, clarified amounts for state aid once the Commonwealth’s allocations are finalized, and refined estimates of any required tax-rate change.

Votes at a glance: the board adopted the finance report, including the motion to advertise the proposed final general fund budget for 2025-26. The motion passed; four members voted no on the budget line as noted above.

The board did not set a final tax rate tonight. Malone said the district will continue to analyze options and will bring a recommended final budget (and any tax-rate action) back at the June meeting when state funding clarity is expected.