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UNION TWP. — The Northwest Area School Board gave preliminary approval to a $18.14 million budget for the 2015-16 school year Wednesday night that includes a tax raise.

On an 8-0 vote, with one school director, Darryl Morgan, absent, the board gave preliminary approval to increase taxes to 10.2467 mills, a rate which is within the parameters of a 2.6 percent state index. The increase is anticipated to raise $126,495.

A mill is $1 in taxation for every $1,000 in assessed valuation.

Final adoption is scheduled at 7 p.m. on June 23, but in the interim board President Randy Tomasacci and business consultant Albert Melone said they are hopeful that additional revenue via state government reimbursement will offset the need to raise taxes.

Tomasacci wasn’t that optimistic, however.

“We can hope, but it looks like the tax hike will stick,” he said.

In the 2014-15 budget, the board raised taxes 6.02 percent.

Tomasacci said that through a series of expenditure and staff reductions, Northwest has been able to turn a deficit that in January was estimated at over $1 million to a projected general fund surplus of over $500,000 by June 30.

Tomasacci said $935,592 in savings have been realized through cuts and another $730,000 realized via adjustments in spending. He added that a $100,000 credit may also be forthcoming by tweaking health care insurance.

Tomasacci, however, said the school district still faces challenges because of shrinking student population, which is down 25 percent; $700,000 in costs to support cyber and charter education and ever-increasing costs of pension benefits.

In contrast to real estate taxes, the board voted to sustain rates on a series of per capita, occupational and earned income taxes that are imposed to help finance the budget.

Besides fiscal issues, the board also acted to approve Michelle Boberick as commencement speaker on June 12, accepted a contract with the Nutrition Group to provide student food services in 2015-16 at an increase of 5 cents for lunch and breakfast and gave acting superintendent Betsy Ellis the go-ahead to seek bids, with a maximum of $5,000, for fencing around the newly developed field hockey facility.

The board also accepted the resignation of Ryan Craig as network support technician; granted sabbatical leave for Bryan Glahn; accepted the resignation of Eric Miner as boys’ varsity basketball coach and acted to appoint Justin Babcock as boys’ basketball coach and Amy Kachinko as girls’ basketball coach.