Norwin faces $8 million deficit in proposed budget

Norwin School District officials are looking to cut costs to close a projected $8 million deficit in its 2023-2024 budget.

The school board adopted a preliminary budget that projects revenues for the upcoming school year at about $81 million, but with $89 million in proposed expenditures. The board approved the budget on a 6-2 vote, with directors Shawna Ilagan and Robert Wayman opposing it, while Christine Baverso, Darlene Ciocca, Alex Detschelt, William Essay, Raymond Kocak and Patrick Lynn supported it.

The budget will be revised before it is adopted June 5, Superintendent Jeff Taylor said.

There are costs that are yet to be determined, such as the number of kindergarten students who will enroll and the number of textbooks that will have to be purchased for the next school year, he said.

The goal will be to reduce expenditures without cutting educational programs, Taylor said.

Ciocca, board president, said normally there are significant reductions in the proposed expenditures before the final budget is approved.

“It’s up to us to decide what is the priority” in terms of expenditures and the district “will start making the hard decisions,” Kirsch said.

The district levies a real estate tax of 85.8 mills in Westmoreland County and 12.81 mills for the 18 properties Norwin serves in White Oak and South Versailles in Allegheny County. The tax levy is different in the two counties because of the differences in real estate assessment.

Of the taxes collected in the Westmoreland portion of the district, revenue from 1.2 mills is allocated to the Norwin Public Library, as approved by a voter referendum.

The school board in January approved a resolution that it would not raise taxes above the state-determined index of a 5.3% increase from the current school year. Even if the board were to raise the property taxes by the maximum rate of 4.5 mills, the revenue generated by the tax increase “will not even come close to reaching the $89 million,” Kirsch said.

One mill of property tax generates about $422,000 in revenue, he said.

The revenue side of the school budget is “pretty much flat” for the next school year, while expenditures have risen because of various fixed costs, such as salaries, curriculum and technology.