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Pitman board flags $600,000 health‑insurance spike and state‑aid cap shortfall in preliminary budget
Summary
In a preliminary budget presentation, district leaders said an 18% increase in health‑insurance premiums will cost about $600,000 and that state aid caps leave the district short of the formula amount, creating a funding gap the board will address at an April 29 public hearing.
Pitman Boro School District officials told the board at Monday’s meeting that a preliminary budget faces a sizable health‑insurance increase and a shortfall caused by state aid caps.
Dr. Preston, introducing the budget, said the district has three principal goals for the year: preserve existing programs, build capacity to keep and attract in‑district students, and optimize underused facilities to increase revenue. "The biggest issue this year...is the sharp rise of health care premiums," he said, adding that "we received an 18% health care adjustment...which amounts to about a $600,000 increase in premiums." He described the increase as "unprecedented" for budgeting purposes.
Chief budget officer Mr. Stratus walked the board through the numbers behind state aid and levy options. He said the state funding formula would call for roughly $6.9 million in aid but, because of statutory caps that limit gains and losses, Pitman is projected to receive about $5.226 million under current calculations. "With those caps, we instantly become underfunded and we are at 76% funded," he said. Administrators described the gap as material to the final budget and said they are continuing to refine estimates.
The presentation outlined the mechanics the district can use to balance the budget: the 2% tax-cap increase available to all districts, a healthcare adjustment the state allows to be added to local levies, and banked cap the district has available from prior years. Using those levers, the administration presented a package amounting to a 3.52% maximum authority shown in the draft documents; officials said they would seek to calibrate use of that authority against program priorities and taxpayer sensitivity.
Board members asked procedural and comparative questions about other districts’ levy choices and the timing of state figures. Administrators reminded the public that this is a preliminary budget and that a formal public hearing is scheduled for April 29, when the board will consider public input and updated numbers before taking any final vote.
What’s next: the district will refine its figures over the coming weeks and hold the statutorily required budget hearing on April 29. Any final levy or budget decisions will be taken after that hearing and posted in the board’s public record.
