EMMAUS, Pa. – The East Penn School District Board of Directors on Monday night approved the 2025-26 final budget which includes a tax increase.
The $206 million spending plan implements a 4% tax hike on property owners. The increase is the highest allowed under the Act 1 Index without referendum or special exceptions.
A home with a $215,749 assessed value would see an $181 annual tax increase, according to Business Administrator Robert Saul. Each percentage increase translates into about $1.2 million in additional revenue for EPSD.
The district projects $195 million in revenue with the majority— $144.4 million— coming from local sources, $49 million from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and $1.6 million from the federal government. This represents a 5.1% increase from the 2024-25 budget.
The district is spending most of its budget— about $136.7 million— on salaries and benefits, which is typical for a school district. This is a 4.6% increase from the current year.
EPSD has a total fund balance— comprised of committed, assigned and unassigned funds— and budgetary reserve of $23.5 million. About $7.9 million is unassigned.
The district's 2024-25 spending plan contained a 4.12% tax increase, the largest hike in more than 10 years. The 2023-24 budget contained a 2.51% tax hike and the 2022-23 budget raised taxes 3%. East Penn School District has raised taxes nine times in the last 10 years.
K-8 realignment
Directors received an update on financing the district's kindergarten through eighth grade expansion and realignment plans.
The plans include a large-scale addition at Lower Macungie Middle School and a renovation project at Howard A. Eyer Middle School. The total combined project cost is $94.8 million with another $20.1 million for projects currently under consideration in the district's 10-year capital plan.
Financial experts offered a scenario which would raise taxes on property owners to the Act 1 Index or the maximum amount possible every year for the foreseeable future. Under this scenario, a property assessed at $215,000 would realize a $156 to $170 annual tax increase. Another option included borrowing the money, while another scenario involved reducing staffing.
Earlier this year, the district offered a presentation entitled "Redefine, Redesign, Reimagine," which centered on the district's kindergarten through eighth grade properties. Specifically, this includes kindergarten through fourth grade, the fifth and sixth grade center, and the seventh and eighth grade center.
The district's middle schools will be redesigned and one of the buildings— Howard A. Eyer Middle School— will house all fifth and sixth graders, while the other building— Lower Macungie Middle School— will be home to seventh and eighth graders. The project will also impact EPSD's elementary schools.
If approved, two construction phases are planned, with the first set to start in July 2026 and end in August 2027, and the second planned for September 2027 through June 2028.
Directors who spoke Monday night expressed concerns about needed high school renovations and the public's enthusiasm, or lack thereof, for the highest possible tax increases for several consecutive years. Other directors reviewed the spending more favorably and cited the project as progress that produces an improved school district.
