FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2014
CONTACT: Madeline Bergman, 215-853-1032
Communication & Development Specialist
N ORTH P ENN B OARD OF S CHOOL D IRECTORS A PPROVE 2014-2015
F INAL B UDGET
LANSDALE - The North Penn Board of School Directors approved a final budget of $227,035,981 for
the 2014-2015 school year at an action meeting Thursday night. The budget includes a 2.1 percent
tax increase for residents, which is the state’s Act 1 index. It equates to a $72 increase for the
average homeowner in Montgomery County and $61 for the average homeowner in Bucks County.
The 2.1 percent tax increase is needed to help fund expenses, many of which are outside of the
school district’s control, that exceed total projected revenues for the 2014-2015 school year by $3.96
million. In fact, next year’s budget is a 5.7 percent increase from the current year’s budget due to a
6.9 percent increase in medical benefits, $2.1 million in funding for the potential of two new charter
schools mid-year, new debt service for Hatfield Elementary School renovations and significantly
increasing Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS) obligations. Due to the impact of
pension obligations and health care costs on the overall total cost of compensation of employees,
very modest increases are included in the budget for salary increases.
“Many school districts throughout the state are cutting student programs to balance their budget but I
am very proud to say North Penn has not had to touch its academic offerings,” said Dr. Curtis R.
Dietrich, superintendent. “Through the hard work of staff we have focused controlling costs on the
operational side of the school district so that our resources remain focused on student learning.”
Due to prudent budgeting and continual efforts to raise revenues and decrease costs, NPSD is
expecting to end the current year with revenues exceeding general fund expenditures. The savings
come primarily from the operational side of the school district and include living with vacancies and
energy savings. The district also saw a slight increase in earned income tax revenue. These funds
are now available to pay for important capital improvement projects such as roof replacements and
technology infrastructure updates, and potentially to begin to replenish the health care fund which
was significantly depleted this year by unanticipated medical claims.
Also helping the bottom line is that NPSD continued its efforts to increase alternative revenue sources
this past year. These efforts will continue into the 2014-2015 school year. Advertising, district-initiated
property re-assessments and other initiatives help to increase revenues and offset expenditures.
“The cost of public education continues to rise at a rate that is difficult to manage without increasing
taxes,” said Vincent Sherpinsky, president, NPSD Board of School Directors. “I am pleased we once
again passed a budget that maintains one of the lowest tax rates in the county, and at the same time
provide a nationally recognized education.”
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