Northern Lehigh School District continues to look at ways to trim a sizable shortfall for its 2024-2025 budget.

“Currently our budget is short $1.28 million, however, of that $555,000 administration is recommending using fund balance for one-time purchases,” District business Manager Sherri Molitoris told the school board on Monday. “Those one-time purchases are things such as technology upgrades, some of the offset to the new ELA program we’re looking at bringing into the district, our feasibility study, bond payments, and we also are using some of our money set aside for PSERS (Public School Employees’ Retirement System) and medical health increases. “So, after we take off the $555,000, we’re still district short $725,000,” she said.

Molitoris said at a finance committee meeting, the board had asked what percentage of increase, what kind of tax dollars in revenues would generate from that.

She said a 2% increase would realize additional revenues of $351,000; 2.5% would be $438,800; 3% would be $526,600; 3.5% would be $614,400; and 4% would be $702,200.

“Again at the May 6 finance committee meeting, we will give our next presentation of the budget, adjusting revenues and expenditures if things come; if we received additional information that we can update our budget at that point in time we will,” Molitoris said. “Keep in mind that in May is our open enrollment period for our employees to decide on their health insurance choices for next school year, so that will change our budget depending upon those choices when we do the May final look at our budget presentation.”

She added that upon Monday night’s approval of the board committee minutes, the budget that was presented at a recent finance meeting will be attached to those minutes for anybody in the community who wants to review that presentation.

Board President Mathias Green asked if a 4% increased would balance the budget the way it currently stands.

Molitoris said a 4% increase would take the district to $702,000, and the district is $725,000 short, so a bit over 4%.

Last month, the board heard Molitoris and the teachers’ union president about the 2024-2025 budget.

Tim Weaber, who serves as president of the Northern Lehigh Education Association, addressed proposed preliminary budget staffing proposals.

Weaber said that when Elementary and Secondary School Relief funding became available, new positions were created, which was a result of administration proposals and school board approval.

Weaber said he wants to address positions, based on projected growth of the district.

Weaber said there was a proposal to add $474,200 to retain one districtwide instructional paraprofessional, one Peters classroom teacher; one districtwide technology integration specialist and one administrator.

He suggested more teachers to meet the growth of the district.

In February, Molitoris said the district could get significant increases in its basic education funding.

At that time, she said that Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposed state budget calls for a 13.62% increase, or $1.1 billion, to Basic Education to be funded through two different funding formulas.

She said Shapiro also is proposing resetting the base amount back to what is the 2023-2024 amount.

Molitoris said that if the governor’s budget passes, Northern Lehigh’s increase would be $765,000 in additional revenue, which would amount to $8.874 million in yearly Basic Education.

She said Shapiro also proposed $50 million increase to Special Education, for which Northern Lehigh’s increase would be $52,000, with a yearly amount of $1.613 million in Special Education.

The new fiscal year begins July 1.