Kutztown board approves nonbinding proposed final budget with 4% increase; four teaching positions reduced

The Kutztown Area School Board voted Monday to adopt a nonbinding proposed final budget for the 2025–26 school year that includes a 4% tax increase, $38,014,569 in revenues and $38,170,528 in expenditures. Administration said the proposal relies on local taxes (real estate, earned income and transfer taxes) and would leave the district approximately $170,000 in the red without further adjustments or the use of a special-education exemption.

During discussion, administration explained staffing implications: the district’s full-time teaching staff would fall from 117 to 113 under the plan, a reduction administrators described as the result of retirements and decisions not to refill some positions. "This would be looking at 117 full-time teachers; this would be looking at 113, so [a] reduction of four teachers," a district official said, noting those changes include a high-school science position, an elementary position, an English language-learners role and a middle-school librarian position and that a director of curriculum position would also be omitted.

Board members debated whether the district should include a special-education exemption that administration said could generate roughly $230,000 in additional revenue. One board member urged including the exemption, saying preliminary work indicated the district qualifies; others emphasized the proposed final is nonbinding and that the board has further budget committee meetings before a final June vote. A separate line of discussion considered whether formalized donation mechanisms or alumni fundraising could offset shortfalls; some members called that approach inappropriate for recurring operational costs.

On a roll-call vote, the board approved the proposed final budget. The vote was not unanimous, and administration emphasized the proposal remains preliminary: a budget-and-finance committee meeting is scheduled for May 27 and the board expects to finalize the budget at a June meeting once additional analysis and potential adjustments are complete.

The board’s action meets procedural requirements for adopting a proposed final budget 30 days before the final budget, and it gives the district staff a working plan while negotiations and committee review continue. The item is nonbinding; further adjustments, including use of the special-education exemption or other revenue options, remain possible before a final vote.