WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. – The finance/personnel committee of the Whitehall-Coplay School District Board of Directors learned the highest amount it could raise the millage rate on property owners in the 2027-28 budget Monday night.
The Pennsylvania Department of Education informed the district the adjusted Act 1 Index for next year is 4.9%. That’s an increase from last year’s 4.7% figure. Should the district want to exceed the 4.9% amount, it would need voter referendum approval.
Monday night, directors discussed obtaining a higher tax increase beyond the 4.9% amount through voter referendum. No decision was made.
The Act 1 Index is used to determine the maximum tax increase on property owners in a school district. It is calculated by averaging the percent increases in the Pennsylvania statewide average weekly wage and the federal employment cost index for elementary and secondary schools.
Because Whitehall-Coplay’s market value/personal income aid ratio is greater than .4, the district can increase taxes greater than the base ratio. The base index for the 2027-28 school year is 3.6%. With the aid ratio formula, the district is permitted to raise taxes another 1.3% for a 4.9% total.
Districts can obtain an exception from the Act 1 Index if rate increases are needed to cover specific cost types. The one special exception WCSD is eligible for is special education expenditures.
Should a school district not seek to raise taxes above the Act 1 Index, they must formally “opt out.”
WCSD is scheduled to adopt an “opt-out” resolution at its Jan. 11, 2027, meeting. The district is scheduled also to present a preliminary budget roughly one month earlier at a Dec. 14 committee meeting.
Money problems
An early preliminary 2027-28 budget discussion Monday night indicated the district is facing a $9.9 million deficit, with revenues totaling $106.1 million and expenditures at $116 million. That’s a $2.1 million increase in revenues and an $8.8 million hike in expenditures from the current 2026-27 budget.
A 4.9% tax increase would net the district an additional $2.7 million. With a $9.9 million deficit, the additional $2.7 million would still leave the district with a $7.2 million deficit.
Salaries are expected to increase next year at WCSD by $2 million. Medical insurance is expected to go up 8%, while FICA and PSERS costs combined are projected for more than a $1 million hike. Charter school costs are projected to rise, as are special education costs.
Transportation costs are expected to increase $1.5 million, which is nine buses, while the district is expecting bond payments to increase $2 million under one projected scenario.
Superintendent Christopher Schiffert is uncertain the district will have the money to pay for the buses considering the financial impact.
The district’s fund balance is just over $9 million.
Directors also received an update on the district’s existing debt, current borrowing market, and the future borrowing environment.
Property tax increases have become a district trend. This year’s budget contained the maximum 4.7% property tax increase. The 2025-26 spending plan offered a 4.6% tax increase, while the district’s 2024-25 budget featured a 4.5% tax increase.
Transportation study
The board advanced procuring a study of the district’s student transportation services for next school year.
A Pennsylvania court has ordered the Whitehall-Coplay School District to resume bus service for charter students.
The transportation study would examine officially operational efficiency, fleet and facility planning, Pennsylvania Department of Education subsidy optimization, and service delivery options. This will inform the administration how to allocate funds for 2027-28 budget development.
The study will cost the district about $40,000, according to Schiffert. WCSD last performed this study in 2017.
Busing this year has proved problematic. Six charter schools sued the district after it stopped busing students 12 years old and up residing in the district as a cost-saving measure. The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ordered WCSD to reinstate that transportation.
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