Lehighton residents won't have to dig deeper into their wallets next year to afford their municipal tax rate.

Borough council on Monday unanimously agreed to adopt the 2017 budget with no millage increase.Council adopted the 2017 tax levy ordinance, which will leave the millage rateat 7.5 mills.For a homeowner with a homeassessed at $50,000, they will again pay $375 to the borough next year in property taxes.However, last month, borough Manager Nicole Beckett said approving next year's spending plan with no millage increase would leave the borough with a $121,550 deficit, adding that council would have to approve a motion to transfer that amount from its Light & Power Department to help balance the budget.Council then made a motion to that effect, and also to look at a rate study for the borough's electric department.At a special meeting held last month, council had been looking at a potential 2.4-mill increase,but instructed Beckett to cutthe budget to reflectbetween a zero to 1.5-mill increase.The last time residents saw their municipal tax rate raised was in 2014, when council approved a 1-mill increase.