Delco School Tax Increases For 2019-20, District-By-District

DELAWARE COUNTY, PA — Delaware County has 14 school districts. Which one has biggest tax increase this year?

A recent analysis by the Philadelphia Inquirer, which looked at districts in Delaware, Montgomery, and Chester counties to determine the largest tax increases, shows where residents in Delaware County will be hit the hardest.

Wallingford-Swarthmore School District, is experiencing the largest percent tax increase this year, the analysis says. Residents there will pay 3.2 percent more in 2019-20, which is $261 for the average homeowner.

The district has experienced a 15 percent tax increase in the past five years — the second highest of any Delco district. Residents there will now pay $8,370, according to the Inquirer analysis.

Radnor Township and Southeast Delco school district are tied for the next highest increases. Taxes are going up 3 percent this year at both districts.

The following districts have increases that range from 1.4 to 2.9 percent: Interboro, Penn-Delco, William Penn, Rose Tree Media, Haverford, Springfield, Upper Darby, Marple Newtown, Garnet Valley, and Ridley.

Taxes in the Chichester School District will not see an increase this year.

You may be wondering how your tax dollars are translating to student performance.

A new school district ranking was released last week by data compiler Niche, and many in Delaware County made the top 100 in the state. In that assessment, the top-ranked Delco school district is Radnor, which came second in the state.

Next up was Wallingford-Swarthmore, which was ranked sixth in Pennsylvania. Garnet Valley School District came in 12th in the state.

Rose Tree Media was ranked 13th, the School District of Haverford Township No. 21, Springfield No. 34, and Marple Newtown 40th. (You can read more about the methodology here.)