Upper Darby schools unveil $165M budget

The Upper Darby School District released a $165 million budget that closes a $9.7 million shortfall with staff reductions, transportation cuts, and other savings, many of them reflecting priorities suggested in a series of community forums.

Residents still face a 2.94 percent property-tax increase, much less than the 6.6 percent that could have been levied before going to a referendum, said Superintendent Louis DeVlieger.

"No school district programs will be cut, no employee will lose a job, and kindergarten, art, music, and sports will all remain intact while still reaching our goal of $9.7 million," he said in presenting the budget to the board Tuesday night.

The tax hike would add $96.50 a year to the bill of a house assessed at $100,000.

Preserving programs was the chief priority of 480 residents who took part in four sessions held by the Penn Project for Civic Engagement, which sought input on how to deal with the budget deficit.

The superintendent said he could not support all of the recommendations of the Penn Project, such as eliminating 10 elementary and 10 high school teachers. His budget calls for cutting seven elementary and four high school teachers. To cut any more, he said, would jeopardize the "equity" and "efficiency" of class size.

The gap in the budget was primarily due to an increase in special education costs of $3.2 million, net pension liability increase of $1.7 million, and additional charter school costs of $746,000, said business manager Ed Smith. - Kathy Boccella