Taxpayers in the Palmerton Area School District may not want to stash away their wallets just yet.

The school board continued its dialogue on the 2013-14 proposed final budget even as less than a handful of residents attended a public presentation Tuesday inside the high school auditorium.This time around, business manager Diane Serfass conducted a power point presentation, at which time she said revenues are at $27,892,525, while expenditures are at $28,174,999.That means the district would have to utilize $282,474 from its fund balance to balance a budget with a zero-mill increase, said Serfass, who noted that revenues are still subject to the governor passing his budget.Budget goals, Serfass said, are to support and sustain a high quality educational program; support the long range financial goals of the district; be responsible financial stewards of taxpayer dollars; provide a safe school environment; meet all contractual and mandated obligations; and improve communication with the community.Issues districts must face as they craft their budget are to try to live within the Act 1 index with as little impact to taxpayers as possible; maintaining educational programs; the impact of Cyber charter/Charter schools; contractual agreements; special education costs; state mandates; future impact of PSERS increases; and economic status of the community, she said.The district's proposed final budget, Serfass said, reduces expenditures without serious harm to current education programming; increases revenue streams where possible; absorbs unfunded state mandates; utilizes savings from retirements to enhance the current curriculum; allowed for needed capital purchases; added 1.5 teaching positions; and added a .5 custodial position.With regard to the gambling and property tax relief, Serfass said the amount certified for the district in 2013-14 is estimated at $743,551, though she noted the county breakdown for the number of qualified properties to calculate that amount has yet to be received.However, there will be no refund checks distributed, said Serfass, who added the funds will be reflected on the July 2013 school property tax bill in the form of an "exclusion" from assessment and "exclusion" from total due.As for budgetary implications, Serfass said the district should attempt to maintain around 8-percent fund balance, or about $2.2 million. She said the bond financial adviser recommends a minimum of $2 million future borrowing and the rating agencies get concerned with regular use of fund balance.Other budgetary implications Serfass mentioned pertain to special needs students; increase in costs for cyber school students; and the retirement rate increase.What the district has done, Serfass said, is become a member of multiple purchasing consortia; more in-house bidding to reduce costs; participation in health insurance trust; a cautious approach to facility planning; refinanced its debt in the last two years; has stressed energy conservation; has sought grant monies; is offering district cyber education; and participates in natural gas/electricity consortia for cost savings.Still pending is the Senate and House budget proposals; the governor's proposed pension reform; government sponsored health-care (ObamaCare) taxes and fees imposed; and continuation of budget review by administration, the board, staff, and public, Serfass said.Director Susan Debski weighed in on the matter, at which time she urged the board to consider a tax increase."I would ask the board to really think about their zero-millage increase, especially if you look at the implications," Debski said. "Don't go to the full amount, don't go to zero; at least meet at the halfway point of a half, or three-quarter mill [increase], to help us for the future."Debski added "it's better to plan for a small amount than not plan it at all.""Nobody wants their taxes to go up," she said. "If we do it incrementally, I think we're doing the taxpayer a favor."Much as he did last week, Director Barry Scherer pined for a .75-mill increase.Board President Tammy Recker said she would prefer to have more discussion with the board as a whole.Director Clarence Myers thanked Serfass "for all your work putting this [presentation] together."Director Charles Gildner reiterated that he would like to go with a zero-mill increase, and added "I think it's time the taxpayers get a break."At a workshop session last week, the majority of board members in attendance indicated they would like to avoid a property tax increase next year.Of the seven board members present for that discussion, four directors recommended a zero-mill increase. Two of those directors, Sherry Haas and Brenda Yeakel, were not in attendance at Tuesday's budget meeting.If the board were to approve next year's budget with a zero-mill increase, it would leave the millage rate at 51.44 mills. For a person with a home valued at $100,000, and assessed at $50,000, they would again pay $2,572 in property taxes to the district.Or, if the board were to go with a .75-mill increase, it would raise the millage rate to 52.19 mills, which would mean a person with the same assessed value would pay $2,610, an increase of $37-$38.Serfass said the plan is for the board to adopt a proposed final budget when it meets at 6:30 p.m. May 21. Final budget adoption is expected at the board's June 18 meeting, she said.In February, the board approved the 2013-14 preliminary general fund budget in the amount of $28,611,621, which would have raised the millage rate 1.18 mills, from 51.44 to 52.62 mills.Since then, the board made several budget adjustments, to the tune of $436,622 worth of reductions. In addition, it created a Life Skills Class and ESY summer program to decrease outsourcing to other educational facilities; utilized attritional savings to replace and hire additional staffing; replaced four teachers with same subject teachers; hiring a full-time Technology teacher in place of a gym teacher at the junior high school; hiring a full-time math teacher in place of a Consumer Science teacher at the high school; one new full-time reading specialist at Towamensing Elementary; a .5 Science teacher at the high school; a .5 floating custodial position; and one full-time Life Skills teacher at Towamensing.That came after Serfass stated in January that her recommendation was to raise taxes to the full index, and to apply for any exceptions it qualifies for. The only exception the district qualifies for is the retirement exception, she said.Serfass said the 2013-14 base index is 1.7 percent, but the district's has been adjusted to 2.3 percent based on its wealth. As a result, the most millage could increase without an approved exception or approved referendum is 1.18 mills, she said.This past June, the board adopted the 2012-13 spending plan, which called for a 4.68-percent, or 2.30-mill increase, in the property tax rate.The $27,267,701 budget raised the millage rate from 49.14 to 51.44 mills, which means a person with a home valued at $100,000, and assessed at $50,000, had to pay $2,572, or $115 more, in property taxes to the district.As part of that approval, the board authorized $179,700 of the 2012-13 committed fund balance to be allocated to the payment of the district's 2013-14 state Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS) obligation.That spending plan also called for the use of $272,486 from the fund balance to pay for the 2011-12 positions that were restored.Also as part of that budget, the board rejected the transfer of $44,945 from the Special Athletic Account to general fund to reimburse the expense of the wrestling, cross country, golf and tennis programs for the 2011-12 fiscal year as per the board resolution dated June 7, 2011.Exceptions the board used as part of that budget pertained to various items that dealt with construction and debt service; special education costs; the PSERS increase; and a total millage increase of 1.17 mills.In addition, the board rejected a motion to utilize the following formula to allocate the donation of $46,351 from the Save Our Sports group before June 30, 2012; 2011-2012 total athletic expenditures less 2011-2012 gate receipts, less 2011-2012 budgeted local revenue equals the amount of the donation to be utilized to fund the total 2011-2012 athletic program. Any remaining donated funds shall be used in the same manner in subsequent years.Additionally, the board authorized the transfer of $32,471 from the Special Athletic Account to General Fund to fund a portion of the 2011-2012 athletic program. The remaining SOS allocation was to have been placed in a separate account.