Downingtown Area SD presents balanced 2025-26 budget; 3.9% millage increase proposed

Superintendent Dr. O'Donnell and district budget staff on Wednesday presented a balanced fiscal 2025‑26 general fund budget to the Downingtown Area School District board and proposed a 3.9% increase in the district millage rate to 31.91 mills. The board’s final vote on the budget and related tax resolutions is scheduled for the board meeting next week.

The administration said the district closed an earlier projected deficit through a combination of staff reassignments, other personnel savings and revenue refinements, and by budgeting conservatively for uncertain state aid. “Spoiler alert, we have a balanced budget, so, we no longer have a deficit,” budget presenter Dave Mattis told the board.

The proposal would fund implementation of full‑day kindergarten in August 2025 and new special‑education staff. Mattis said the district plans to hire between eight and 14 kindergarten teachers and a similar number of paraprofessionals, plus four additional special‑education teachers (three autistic‑support and one life‑skills teacher). The total cost of the new positions and reassignments the administration described for those needs is about $2.2 million.

Why it matters: The board must adopt a final budget and set the real‑estate tax rate before the levy is certified. The administration tied its staffing requests and classroom priorities to the district’s ability to maintain services and to shifting revenue trends.

Key figures and how the budget was balanced - March projection: a $2.1 million deficit for 2025‑26 before revisions, the district said. - April adjustments (staff reassignments and other changes) reduced the shortfall to roughly $900,000. - Further staffing refinements and revenue updates produced an additional $2.5 million in savings, bringing revenues and expenditures into balance, the presentation said. - The district reported about $300.27 million in total revenues and an equal amount in expenses in the presentation’s summary tables.

The administration also highlighted two revenue‑side constraints. First, the district has experienced recurring losses from assessment appeals: since 2021‑22 the district has lost about $3.8 million in recurring real‑estate tax revenue from appeals, Mattis said. Second, uncertainty about the state budget and how much of the governor’s proposed increases will be enacted left the district budgeting conservatively for the state adequacy grant; the administration proposed budgeting $500,000 of potential state adequacy grant funds rather than assuming the full amount.

Homestead credit and homeowner impact The presentation explained that a larger homestead tax credit this year will partially offset the millage increase for qualifying homeowners. The administration said the district expects an approximate 13% increase in the homestead credit, and a slide in the presentation showed a homestead/farmstead credit of $349.10 for 2025‑26. Using the presentation’s example for a “typical” house, the administration said the net dollar increase for that homeowner would be roughly $183 for the year. For residences that qualify for the homestead credit, the district said the effective tax increase is about 3.38% after applying the credit.

Assessment appeals and near‑term risks Board members pressed administration staff on how assessment appeals have reduced revenue and how the district would identify properties that should be reassessed upward. Mattis and the district’s legal/finance staff said appeals typically start when a property owner or taxpayer requests reassessment and that the district responds by hiring appraisers and, when appropriate, filing to contest lowered assessments. The administration noted an unresolved legal issue now before the state supreme court about the district’s authority to pursue some reassessments; until that matter is resolved the district has limited ability to pursue every potential reassessment aggressively.

Program priorities and capital notes - Full‑day kindergarten: district officials said classroom space and initial furnishing for full‑day kindergarten will be ready at renovated sites (Beavercreek, West Bradford and other elementary schools) and that about 700 students had completed registration so far. The district said implementing full‑day kindergarten under the revised plan costs about 25% of the earlier plan that relied on building a new fifth/sixth center. - Brandywine/Bridal (Brandywine Wallace) water project: administration recommended reestablishing budgeted capital dollars for a filtration and potential connection to Aqua’s public water system while noting the connection might occur next year or later depending on utility scheduling and approvals.

Actions on the board agenda and next steps District staff listed multiple action items on the consent and action agendas for the board’s upcoming meeting, including the 2025‑26 general fund budget, adoption of a 31.91‑mill real‑estate tax rate, a resolution setting the homestead/farmstead reduction at $349.10, and a filing/stipulation agreement related to a single assessment appeal with an annual revenue loss of $23,356. At the May 7 meeting the board discussed those items and other routine contract renewals (for example, the Aramark food‑service renewal and proposed breakfast/lunch price changes) but did not record final votes on the 2025‑26 budget or tax resolutions; the administration said the board will vote next week.

Superintendent Dr. O'Donnell thanked staff and classroom teachers for their role in shaping the plan and emphasized the district’s intent to restore reduced support roles over time as revenues permit.

The board is scheduled to consider the final budget and tax‑rate resolutions at its next regular meeting on May 14, 2025.