Tredyffrin/Easttown School District Adopts 2023-2024 Budget Resolution

TREDYFFRIN/EASTTOWN—Tredyffrin/Easttown school board adopted a resolution on Jan. 3 limiting any increase in property taxes for the 2023-2024 fiscal year to at or below the Act 1 index of 4.1 percent.

The board plans to follow a timeline with the final 2022-2023 budget being adopted in June, according to Arthur J. McDonnell, business manager.

The proposed budget for the next school year shows an $8.9M budgeted operational deficit.

The school board and administration plan to work to close the deficit through a combination of increases in the property tax rate, expenditures reductions or the use of existing reserves.

Budget meeting schedule

• Finance committee plans to discuss the budget at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6 in at the district’s administrative office, 940 West Valley Road, Wayne. The meeting will be recorded and will be available on the TESD website.
• Budget workshops are scheduled on March 13 and April 10 immediately following the finance committee meetings at 7:00 pm at Conestoga High School.

This year's budget

The 2022-2023 budget amounted to $166.6 million. The property tax increase was 2.9 percent, amounting to $190 for an average home assessed in the district.
The school board encourages public participation during the budget development process and endeavors to reflect the input of joint stakeholders. All school board committee meetings are open to the public and have public comment periods.

The district provided a list of the major cost drivers of the budget. They include:

• A $24 million project to construct athletic fields adjacent to the high school. They include two artificial turf fields, a softball field, tennis courts, a practice field, a field house with team rooms, concession stand and restrooms, bleachers, a grounds maintenance facility and a parking lot.
• During the summer of 2021, a $39.6 million project to add classrooms, a lab, art room, kitchen meeting rooms and expanded common rooms.
• Rising costs for special education services
• Increase in pension costs from $1.5 million in 2006 to $11.6 in 2022-2023

Additional budget development information is available in the budget section of the district website at www.tesd.net/budget.