More Details Emerge On Bensalem School Tax Hike

BENSALEM TOWNSHIP, PA —The good news, Board Treasurer John Steffy stated in his presentation Tuesday night, is that the "budget outlook is better than previous years."

But with the 2023-2024 school budget increasing 2.53 percent —nearly $4.3 million from the 2022-2023 school budget —school officials decided to level the playing field with a 2.5 percent tax hike.

In a 20-minute budget session, the Bensalem Township School Board granted preliminary-final approval for the $173.3 million 2023-2024 school budget, with one no vote and no public comment.

The approval amounts to about a $100 tax increase for the average township resident.

The adoption of the final budget is expected at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 27.

Steffy said that the vote is procedural and required by law since the budget needs to be displayed for 30 days before final approval.

He said that the approval does not necessarily lock the school district into a tax increase. The school district might be able to make some financial adjustments prior to final budget adoption.

The school district held three budget sessions over the past few months.

In Tuesday's presentation, Steffy said that the district's fund balance dropped 54 percent from $31.5 million in 2012 to $14.6 million in 2019.

He said the budget outlook improved, adding that after seven straight years of fund balance draws that reduced the fund balance by more than $16 million, the district has increased the fund balance from operations for four consecutive years and is projected to do so for the 2022-2023 school year as well.

Although the district may be better off financially, Steffy said that there are still some serious financial issues the district is facing:

• Federal ESSER funds are being utilized to continue/maintain operations for the next fiscal year.
• The district, due to a higher mix of commercial real estate, is more susceptible to changes in the economy.
• When the economy does well, Bensalem Township does very well.
• When there is an economic downturn, the school district feels it more than other Bucks County school districts due to its tax base composition.

While the district is well-positioned for the next fiscal year, school officials must plan for life after ESSER funding:

• The tax increase in the preliminary-final budget will help greatly to address the loss of ESSER funds.
• Increase in state funding benefits Bensalem more so than most other state school districts due to underfunding for years.
• The preliminary-final budget has part of the increase proposed in the governor's budget. If that budget is approved as proposed, it would mean a significant additional subsidy for the district.

Like other school districts, school officials said the main budget increases are from health care, salaries, special education, charter tuition, and teaching and learning (textbooks).

Bensalem has the 6th highest millage rate out of 13 school districts in Bucks County. It also has the second-lowest average tax bill in the county behind Bristol Borough.