With the lack of a state budget for 2015-16 and the expectation of a 2016-17 preliminary budget in February, the Palmerton Area School board had no other choice but to consider the possibility of a tax increase at the Tuesday night workshop meeting.

"We have to keep moving forward. I don't want to do it either, but we have to consider taxes," said Tammy Recker, the school board president."It's a real possibility we'll complete our budget process before the state," Superintendent Scot Engler said.The school district is facing the possibility of $1.2 million in increases in the 2016-17 budget.If it passes a 1-mill increase, then this would generate about $300,000 in revenue, said former business administrator Matt Swarovski. The state allows school districts to increase the mills by 3.2 percent, which would be 1.72 mills in this case. That increase would generate about $500,000, he said."If we do 1 mill, then we have to take $900,000 from the fund balance," school board member Barry Scherer said.Swarovski acknowledged that would be the case.The board members questioned Swarovski further about how much per year 1.72 mills adds to the taxpayers' cost and how much is the base assessment. He told them taxes would increase by $86 per year per household. The base property assessment is $50,000. The current tax rate is 53.8, Swarovski said. It would go up to 55.6."The biggest topics we need some clarity on are taxes and security services," Swarovski said."I'm in favor of the 1.72 mills," Recker said. Other board members agreed that it might be what they have to do.Josann Harry said she is in favor of it, too."I'm just thinking of the taxpayers," she said, with concern.Recker asked the members for their general consensus, and all but Darlene Yeakel said they would consider the increase. Yeakel did not want to reply. Recker asked her for her opinion."It's not our final decision, right?" Yeakel said.With reassurance from her fellow board members that it wasn't a done deal, Yeakel said she would accept the increase in the meantime.The school board doesn't have to pass a final budget until June. By then, the state may have a budget passed and funds released to the schools.Curriculum changesAt the meeting, the school board also heard about curriculum changes to the high school program. Paula Husar, the principal at the high school, some classes will be added and others changed. The school plans to add creative writing as an elective in the English program. In mathematics, they added an advanced placement calculus class to the spring semester. There are 13 students taking the class this semester. The high school also plans to offer the probability and statistics class as a credit course that can fulfill the math graduation requirement.Husar said the biggest change in science is earth and space science for ninth-graders is being replaced with a physical science class titled natural science."It will better prepare the students for physics, chemistry and biology," she said.And last but not least, the school may make the advanced placement history one just for juniors and seniors. Currently, ninth-graders and tenth-graders can take the course, but Husar thinks they may not be able to communicate their opinions in writing as easily as the older students. She does like having several advanced placement classes available."These help us in our school performance profile," she told the board.