Greensburg Salem finalizes $49.4M budget that holds tax line
Jun. 22—Greensburg Salem School Board has approved a $49.4 million 2023-24 district budget that keeps real estate taxes at 89.72 mills.
It's the fourth consecutive year without a tax hike, according to board President Jeff Metrosky.
The district is counting on additional federal and state allocations that weren't certain when the district presented an earlier version of the budget.
Business manager Allison Willis said Greensburg Salem should receive more federal funding than had been expected.
"It looks like it's going to be $180,000 positive revenue opposed to what we had budgeted," she said.
Willis said the district also expects to receive a $650,000 increase in state subsidies, as indicated in Gov. Josh Shapiro's budget proposal. Earlier, she'd taken a more conservative stance, banking on just half of that additional money.
"That's really good news about the state budget," Metrosky said.
As part of a tentative version of the budget approved in May, the district expected to shave about $168,000 off the cost of increasing teacher salaries, as a result of seven veteran faculty members retiring or resigning and being replaced with less-senior instructors.
Willis noted two more teachers since have been added to that list. At it's June meeting, the school board approved the retirements of secondary social studies instructor Lucy Iapalucci and Joanne Finoli, who taught business, computer and information technology (BCIT) courses.
At the same meeting, the board hired three special education teachers as well as a new BCIT instructor, Rachel Pozik. Pozik's starting pay was set at $55,060 — the first step in the bachelor's-degree salary scale.
Greensburg Salem is expecting annual savings of about $127,000 under a new three-year electric service agreement with Marathon Energy. Beginning in November, the district will pay a little more than 7 cents per kilowatt-hour, down from about 10.6 cents under a previous agreement.
Under Pennsylvania's Taxpayer Relief Act, qualified property owners who occupy their own homestead or farmstead can apply to have a portion of their school real estate tax reduced, covered by state gambling tax funds.
In Greensburg Salem, 5,809 qualified Greensburg Salem property owners will be eligible to have each of their tax bills reduced by up to $180.21 for the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
District office vacancy filled
The school board hired Kayla Tamer to fill the vacant central district office post of associate administrator to the superintendent and community outreach. Tamer, who has served as a marketing communications specialist for the Westmoreland Intermediate Unit, will receive an initial salary of $72,000.
She succeeds Ashley Kertes, who died unexpectedly in March.
Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff by email at jhimler@triblive.com or via Twitter .
