Dover Area SD board splits over preliminary budget, 1% tax increase emerges as middle ground

Dover Area School District officials and board members spent the bulk of their May 20 meeting debating next year’s preliminary budget, with proposals ranging from no tax increase and deeper line-item cuts to a modest 1% or larger 2% millage rise.

Chief Financial Officer Miranda Weaver presented updated budget scenarios and options, saying a 1% tax increase would generate about $1.5 million and a 2% increase about $3.0 million. Weaver showed a range of spending-reduction packages — roughly $86,737 in targeted cuts or a larger $173,000 package — and proposed using approximately $1,450,000 from the district’s fund balance under her recommended scenario.

The debate centered on whether to preserve program and student supports by using fund balance and a small tax increase or to protect taxpayers this year by holding the millage flat and making additional cuts. Director McKinney and several others supported a smaller package of $86,737 in nonessential reductions and either no tax increase or the minimal…