District finance staff projects $1.6M special-education cost increase this year, proposes preliminary 2025–26 millage; board adopts preliminary budget

West Chester Area School District finance staff presented an updated budget forecast on April 22 that projects significantly higher special-education tuition costs for the current fiscal year and proposed a preliminary 2025–26 budget that the property finance committee approved for public posting.

Scully, presenting the forecast model and proposed budget, told the committee the district now projects roughly $1,000,000 more in special-education tuition for the 2024–25 year than previously budgeted and carried an additional $600,000 forward into the 2025–26 projection. "We are projecting it to be close to a million dollars over where we had anticipated being," Scully said, attributing the increase to additional placements (including several at the Vanguard program) and higher tuition rates for certain contracted placements.

Scully said the district offset part of the current-year special-education increase by reducing projected costs in two other line items (medical benefits and extra-duty pay), and she carried changes forward into the 2025–26 proposed budget. On the revenue side, the district is projecting higher current real-estate tax collections driven by assessment growth, increased transfer taxes, and higher investment earnings in 2024–25; those items together contributed to an improved projection for the current year.

For 2025–26, the administration proposed a total general-fund budget of about $334.0 million (up about $11.5 million or 3.6% from the 2024–25 budget). Scully presented a preliminary millage analysis and recommended the board adopt a proposed budget/resolution for public posting under Act 1 procedures. The administration’s preliminary millage figures presented to the committee were: - Chester County parcel rate: 23.51 mills (proposed; an increase from 2024–25) - Delaware County parcel rate: 11.43 mills (proposed)

Scully told the committee the proposed figures include expected increases in mandated costs such as PSERS (state teacher retirement) and new staffing, offset partially by projected assessment growth and other revenue increases. She noted a favorable bond sale/refinancing that is expected to reduce long‑term debt-service costs; the refunding of an older series yielded roughly $771,000 in present-value savings, and the combined new borrowing and refunding is expected to yield material savings over the life of the bonds. Administration said it will recognize savings from the new money in the general fund and place refunding savings into capital reserves.

Scully flagged several important uncertainties affecting the budget: the state budget and final PDE allocations, federal funding changes affecting program dollars, and the ongoing risk of commercial tax appeals and future enrollment shifts. She said the administration is assuming level funding from state and federal sources for now and emphasized that the district is in a financial position to cover the 2025–26 year, but warned that future years may be more constrained if federal or state subsidies change.

The property finance committee voted to adopt the resolution to post the proposed 2025–26 budget for the required 30-day public comment period; the committee chair called the roll and recorded the committee’s approval on the record.

Why it matters: The special-education tuition increase is a material driver of near-term expenditure pressure; the preliminary millage and proposed budget determine the district’s tax-notice timeline and trigger the Act 1 public-posting clock. The administration’s recognition of one-time savings from bond activity and the staff decision to use current-year favorable results to offset next-year levy needs were described as consistent with recent board practice.

Speakers (appearing in the transcript and cited in this article): - Scully (finance staff) — presented forecast, special-education projections and the proposed 2025–26 budget. - John (finance staff) — presented bond-refinancing update and savings estimate.

Authorities referenced (as stated in the meeting): - Act 1 index (Pennsylvania school funding index; referenced by Scully in the millage discussion). - US Department of Education / PDE correspondence on federal COVID fund drawdown and compliance (referenced by Scully as a federal uncertainty).

Actions recorded during property finance committee discussion: - motion: "Adopt resolution to post the proposed 2025–26 budget and initiate the 30-day public posting period under Act 1 procedures" — outcome: approved by committee (roll-call affirmed during meeting).

Clarifying details captured from the meeting: - Special-education tuition: budgeted 2024–25 line item originally $4.65M; Scully increased current projection to approximately $5.6M (roughly $1M higher than budgeted), and she carried ~$600k into 2025–26. - Current-year (2024–25) revenue improvements: increased current real-estate tax receipts ($490k), transfer taxes (approx +$250k), and investment earnings (+$200k) were cited as partially offsetting expenditure increases. - Bond refinancing: refunding of an 2014 series produced about $771k in savings; anticipated further debt-service savings from new money issuance to be recognized once final numbers settle.

Searchable tags: ["budget","special education","millage","West Chester Area SD","bond refunding","Act 1"]

Provenance: budget forecast and proposed-millage discussion presented in the property finance committee meeting transcript beginning with Scully’s forecast remarks and continuing through the committee’s vote to post the proposed budget for public comment.

Ending: The committee approved the resolution to post the proposed 2025–26 budget; the board will consider final adoption after the statutory posting period and any required public hearings.