Gateway School Board approves budget with 3.6% tax increase

The Gateway School Board on June 15 approved a general fund budget for 2021-22 that is a 15.3 percent increase over this past year’s budget, and it also comes with a 3.6% tax increase.

The real estate tax millage rate will go up from 20.165 to 20.891, which will net approximately $1,681,004. The board raised the rate 1.5 percent a year ago.

The budget will increase to just over $87.1 million. That includes federal and state covid-19 relief funds and money that will be used for the construction and renovation of Gateway Middle School.

“We don’t take tax increases lightly, and we don’t take the budget lightly,” school board president Brian Goppman said. “We do our homework and sift through line item by line item. We do everything we can.

“A tax increase is the last thing we want to do, but in order to keep things level, occasionally a tax increase is necessary. We do make sure the money is being put to the right places and that we’re being fiscally responsible.”

The middle school project is a “big bulk” of the increase from the past school year, Goppman said.

In February, the board approved a resolution that set the maximum project cost at $39,463,123. Paul Schott, the district’ business manager, had previously said that a tax hike would be necessary to cover the costs of the renovation and construction. The project is expected to last 25 months once started.

The district is still dealing with the repercussions and unknowns of covid-19 in terms of the potential decrease in income tax and loss of revenue from local businesses.

“For example, the Monroeville Mall is our biggest source of revenue in taxes, and if stores leave, it hurts us,” Goppman said. “If the property value goes down, it’s a much bigger hit than an individual house property value going down, so retention of businesses and the Monroeville Mall property value are perhaps the biggest unknowns. We can’t be afraid of what’s going to happen but we have to plan for what you can. Anything can change at the drop of a hat.”