MANDATA - Taxes in the Line Mountain School District will remain the same in 2013-14 with board members unanimously passing the 2013-14 budget Tuesday night.
The board's 7-0 vote keeps the real estate millage rate at 70, which reflected a suggestion by Superintendent David Campbell last month to not increase property taxes.
The $17,236,460 budget is a result of the board's decision to consolidate the elementary schools, board President Troy Laudenslager said Wednesday.
The elementary schools in Leck Kill and Dalmatia will close at the end of the school year. All students in grades kindergarten through fourth will attend classes at Trevorton, where an addition is being constructed. An addition is also being built to the seventh- and eighth-grade wing at the junior/senior high school in Mandata to accommodate fifth- and sixth-graders.
"Without the consolidation, we would have had a lot of difficulty without raising taxes to cover everything," Laudenslager said.
There will be no teaching staff positions eliminated, and the administration is working to figure out which positions from the classified staff, such as custodians, will be eliminated, he said.
"We were able to save the curriculum, improve education and not raise taxes," Laudenslager said.
He said there was no discussion about the budget Tuesday night since those conversations were held at length in previous meetings and because there was no tax increase proposed.
The board also approved Director Lawrence Neidig as treasurer for next school year with no stipend. He was originally going to be approved with a salary of $500, but Neidig considers being paid for the position an antiquated practice, Laudenslager said.
In other business, the board approved:
- A three-year agreement with Lancaster Lebanon IU13 to use their Microsoft Enrollment for Education Solutions program to obtain all Microsoft Software and Licensing for the district. The agreement, which starts June 1 and ends July 31, 2016, costs the district $12,001.68 for the first year and $10,752.48 both for the second and third years.
- The purchase of Juniper Data and Voice Network switches from Blast IU17, Canton, at a cost of $43,910. The switches will be used in the elementary and middle school expansions and for the data centers in the high school and Trevorton elementary.
- The appointment of Richard J. Roberts Jr., Leavens and Roberts, Shamokin, as solicitor for the next school year at an hourly rate of $120, and Patty Troutman as board secretary for the next school year at a salary of $1,500 per year.