Panther Valley homeowners may see an increase in their school property taxes in the fall, but it will not be more than 3.8 percent.

On Wednesday, the board adopted a resolution that prohibits them from raising taxes any more than that amount in its 2017-18 budget."We're not going to raise anything past the index, which is 3.8 percent," new board President Wayne Gryzik said.At a meeting that was postponed due to last week's snowstorm, the board decided to reject a preliminary budget presented by administrators that would have potentially included a larger tax increase.In its place, they adopted a resolution saying that they will not exceed the maximum property tax increase set by the state - which is 3.8 percent."You have to do one or the other. You already voted down the preliminary budget, so this is the only alternative to comply with the law," the board's attorney, Robert Yurchak said.The board doesn't have to pass its final budget until June, but they are required to pass a preliminary budget if they want to go over the maximum increase.Administrators had asked for a preliminary budget with a larger tax increase - between six and seven percent - but the board was not interested.Only three members voted in favor of the preliminary budget, which needed five votes to pass.The board was without three of its members. Anthony DeMarco and Joseph Faenza were absent, while board member Brian Dolena resigned before the meeting.Irene Genther, who voted in favor of the preliminary budget, questioned whether the board will be able to cover increasing expenses with the 3.8 percent tax increase."Will this cover our expenses, the amount raised within the index, will this cover our expenses, or have us go bankrupt?" she asked.The district doesn't know how much money it will receive from the state in its budget, and the board is currently in negotiations with its teachers' union, who has given May 22 as a strike date.The preliminary budget would have included about $26 million in expenses - a slight increase over 2016-17.Genther was adamant that the proposed tax increase in the preliminary budget - about five percent - was not final. But it would have given the board flexibility as it cut expenses and looked for more revenue.