Pattye Benson

Community Matters

TE School Board — Finance Committee Meeting Tonight (Remember 7.2% Tax Increase is Possible)

The 2010-11 Preliminary Budget will be discussed at tonight’s (Monday, December 14) School Board Finance Committee Meeting, 7:30 PM, Tredyffrin/Easttown Administration Offices (TEAO) at 940 West Valley Road, Suite 1700, Wayne. Here is the Finance Committee Meeting agenda. One of the stated committee goals is to “study implications and impact of converting TE School District to a charter school district” — wonder what that means to the community? I am hoping to receive details post-meeting from some of you who attend. Please read these 2 earlier posts from last month, Looking for School Board Details and Tredyffrin Easttown School District – 7.2% Tax Increase Possible

I’ll be curious if there is any mention of the PA Teachers Pension Fund — see following article:

Friday, December 11, 2009

PA Teachers’ Pension Fund Wants Billions More from Taxpayers

The Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement Fund said today its “plan net assets” used for calculating future pension subsidies shrank to $43 billion at June 30, from $63 billion a year ago.

As a result, PSERS is calling for an 8.22% payroll surcharge on all school payrolls in 2010-11, to be financed by state taxpayers and local property taxpayers, up from this year’s 4.78% levy. Put another way, PSERS wants $1.1 billion next year, up from $617 Million this year, to supplement investment profits and payroll deductions taken from school workers’ checks, so it can pay around $5 billion in annual pensions to retired school workers and administrators.

That’s going to mean either local property tax increases, plus more money from the state’s pinched revenues; or some quick legislating to postpone the problem once again.

PSERS also says the surcharge should go up to 29% of payroll, or more than $4 billion, in 2012-13.

To read more from PSER, click here

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  1. I think that the residents better wake up in Tredyffrin! There’s probably not much more jumping up and down that can be done about the township budget but what about the school budget? Are you kidding me? Where are the people about the 7.2% tax increase?

    Sure, I want the Fire Department to get their 5% cut reinstated, but all kidding aside, what’s this 7.2% about? The residents need to get just as angry (more so, if you ask me) about the school budget! Are we just going to sit on the side and do nothing? This is our money folks!

  2. I thought that, since the school board voted to stay within the Act 1 cap, the maximum possible tax increase is 2.9%. What am I missing here?

    As for the pension fund, the problem as I understand it, and as Kevin Mahoney tried to point out, is that the state, durint the last “economic downturn,” allowed employers to contribute a reduced amount for years–an action that resulted in more than a decade of underfunding. The problem, then, isn’t simply a decrease in return on investment, and was completely predictable. Is that not correct?

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