Lehighton Area School District’s board of directors narrowly passed a proposed final 2021-22 budget Monday night, calling for a 4.2% property tax increase.

The budget passed 5-4 during a contentious, nearly five-hour board meeting that ended shortly before the stroke of midnight. It currently calls for $42.67 million in expenses against $42.54 million in revenues.

David Bradley led the opposition against the budget, arguing the district has “an ethical responsibility to balance the budget” before passing even a proposed version of it.

Business Administrator Edward Rarick, however, said the proposed final budget met the Pennsylvania Department of Education requirements.

Lehighton’s final budget adoption is scheduled for June.

Bradley was joined by Gail Maholick, Richard Beltz and Joy Beers in voting against the proposed budget. Wayne Wentz, Larry Stern, Rita Spinelli, Stephen Holland and Nathan Foeller voted in favor.

“We have redundant tasks being done by multiple employees,” Bradley said. “We have opportunities to save money and we need to do that. It is not the administration’s job to form a budget. That belongs to the board.”

Bradley was critical of the administration, saying they were “playing games with the budget,” for not adjusting it to reflect recommendations he made.

According to Superintendent Jonathan Cleaver, those recommendations included eliminating positions such as the district police officers, social workers and the assistant to the superintendent, among others.

“We see the benefit in those positions and just because we don’t agree with you, you don’t like it,” Cleaver told Bradley.

Cleaver defended the work of Rarick to this point in the budget process. The 2021-22 budget is the first in the district for Rarick, who was hired in November.

“He has put in countless hours trying to get this budget to where it is,” Cleaver said of Rarick. “He has met more with staff and principals than I have ever seen in my time here. This board has never seen as much financial information as they are right now. He has been transparent times 100. For you to question anything he is doing is inappropriate. I will back him 110 percent.”

Facing a significant budget deficit a year ago, Lehighton saved $992,810 by eliminating nonmandated transportation, but shortly before the start of the school year, it restored $800,000 and offered busing for students living outside Lehighton Borough. The district since added three bus stops along Second Street in town for elementary students living in the borough.

The 2021-22 budget fully restores $1.3 million for student transportation.

Should the 4.2% property tax increase hold, it would be the maximum the district could raise taxes under Pennsylvania’s Act 1. It would follow a 3.6% property tax increase last year. A homeowner with a property assessed at $80,000 would see a $170 increase in property taxes.

The proposed budget approved Monday did not include a donation to the Lehighton Area Memorial Library, an issue that has sparked much discussion in the district over the past month.

Bradley made a motion to give $30,000 to the library, which would be a $10,000 increase from the 2020-21 contribution. It failed 5-3, however, with Wentz, Foeller, Spinelli, Holland and Stern voting against it, and Beltz, Bradley and Maholick in favor.

Wentz and Foeller said they would support the $20,000 contribution that the district gave in previous years, while Spinelli and Holland said they’d like to see an initial $10,000 commitment, with the opportunity for more if the district’s budget allows later in the fiscal year.

“I feel very strongly we should support the library,” Spinelli said, “but we need to be able to buy supplies right now for our own classrooms. The district comes first. I’d be happy with a set amount of $10,000 and then if our fund balance increases, we could give a second stipend.”

Maholick, who is the district’s representative on the library board, said if the $20,000 is not put back in the budget, the library will likely have to cut back on services.

“It would hurt the community as a whole,” she said.

With the final budget adoption still a month away, Stern said there will be budget meetings between now and then where the board can hammer out the details of a community library contribution.

Library Director Melissa Hawk said the staff is one of the most fiscally responsible you’ll find, right down to cutting coupons for cleaning products.

“We would really appreciate staying in budget for amount we have had, which is the $20,000,” Hawk said. “We have our budget for the year set at that amount. It would really help us be able to maintain our level of service.”