Northern Lebanon School District board adopts 4.2% tax increase after 5-4 vote

The Northern Lebanon School District board of directors voted 5-4 on May 12 to adopt the district’s final 2026 budget, approving a 4.2% tax increase that board members said is needed to cover debt service, staffing and capital obligations including the district’s share of an upcoming Career & Technology Center renovation.

The board took the roll-call vote on agenda item 9.1 after nearly two hours of public comment and internal discussion. President Nam confirmed the result after the roll call: five yes, four no; the motion carried and made items 9.2 and 9.3 moot.

Why it mattered: The board framed the choice as weighing near-term homeowner impacts against long-term fiscal stability. Vice President Williams, who advocated for a lower 3.75% increase, said the difference between the proposals is modest for homeowners but meaningful for the budget. “A 3.75% rate increase would increase the annual payment for the average homeowner about $124 a year,” Williams said, adding that a 4.2% rate would be “roughly $139 a year — just $15 more.” Williams urged the board to take only what it genuinely needs while saving for the CTC renovation.

Proponents of the 4.2% option argued the larger increase gives the district more flexibility to set aside funds for its portion of the CTC renovation and maintain necessary services. Dr. Kiser told the board that while tax increases are unpopular, the district faces ongoing debt service and rising costs that make some increase necessary. “We have an obligation to contribute to that share of the investment,” Kiser said, noting the board’s long-term view of preventing future, larger tax spikes.

The vote: The roll-call vote recorded four no votes (Directors Krieser, Moyer, Vice President Williams and Blough) and five yes votes (Directors Fowler, Murray, Klein, England and President Nam). The motion to approve item 9.1 — the final budget with the 4.2% index — passed, and the president declared items 9.2 and 9.3 moot.

Other actions: Earlier in the meeting the board unanimously approved the evening’s agenda and the consent agenda, accepted human-resources items including the resignation of an interim substitute board secretary and the volunteer appointment of Dr. Bastic Jones to serve as substitute secretary, and approved staffing items for the elementary co-curricular slate and a general education aide. After the budget vote, the board also unanimously approved four service agreements for educational and behavioral-health services (VISTA school, CAIU school-age education, a student agreement and a WellSpan Philhaven contract).

Public comment and oversight concerns: During public comment, Christina Ingram urged the board to review procurement policy 610 and questioned whether purchases have been split to avoid bidding thresholds and whether changes adopted in 2023 were properly documented. Jonathan Lum, a district alumnus and teacher, criticized a preface the president had added before public comment that he said could chill free-speech directed at employees; Lum urged transparency in district finances and audits. Board members repeatedly said audits have returned clean and defended oversight: “Every audit conducted on this district has come back clean,” Vice President Williams said.

What’s next: With the budget adopted, the district will proceed under the 4.2% millage for the coming fiscal year. Board members said they expect to continue monitoring the district’s health, maintain public transparency, and coordinate with the Joint Operating Committee on the CTC articles-of-agreement and renovation timetable.