It looks like Palmerton Area School District may hold the line on next year's property tax rate after all.

By a 5-3 margin, the school board agreed Tuesday to approve the proposed 2013-14 budget with no millage increase.Directors Clarence Myers, Charles Gildner, Sherry Haas, Darlene Yeakel and Joshua Smale were in favor. Directors Barry Scherer and Susan Debski, along with board President Tammy Recker, were opposed. Director Josann Harry was absent.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.Revenues are at $27,892,525, while expenditures are at $28,174,999, which means the district would have to utilize $282,474 from its fund balance to balance a budget with a zero-mill increase.Before the vote, several directors expressed their thoughts on next year's spending plan.Debski reiterated her stance that the board should approve a tax increase of between .50 and .75 mills."I would like to see something that will keep our school district at the functional level that it should have been at the last 10 years," Debski said. "We're playing catch-up."But, Gildner reaffirmed his belief that a zero-mill increase should be approved for taxpayers in the district, and added "I think they need a break."Myers concurred with Gildner, and noted that property taxes have been raised by over 10 mills in the past three years.As he has throughout the budget process, Scherer once again stated his desire for a .75-mill increase."It took a lot of hard work and discussion to get the fund balance where it's at," Scherer said. "I think it would be prudent for the board to be fiscally responsible."Debski noted that it was the recommendation of business manager Diane Serfass that the board consider raising taxes, and added "we're talking $37" more that the average taxpayer would have to pay in property taxes with a .75-mill increase.However, Haas stated "that $37 might be the straw that breaks the camel's back."Serfass said the primary reason for her recommendation to raise taxes was due to a huge increase in the state Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS) obligation.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 has 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.The board is expected to grant final budget adoption when it meets at 6:30 p.m. June 18.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 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.