Northern Lehigh School District has agreed to hold the line on next year's tax rate.

By a unanimous vote, the school board on Monday approved the 2017-18 general fund final budget with no tax increase.The $34,059,577 spending plan calls for a 21.34 millage rate for Lehigh County and a 61.81 millage rate in Northampton County.Sherri Molitoris, co-director of business affairs/human resources, said the district currently has a $1,033,000 shortfall, but will offset a tax increase through the use of its fund balance as the result of savings over the past few years.While the budget calls for a zero-mill increase, Molitoris said that based on the median assessed value of a home, residents of the district who live in Northampton County will see a $64 decrease in their property tax rates, while residents of the district who live in Lehigh County will see a $10 increase in their property tax rates.She said that is due to the State Tax Equalization Board, and because the district exists between two counties, Lehigh and Northampton, equalization board rebalances the tax levy from the prior year based on the percent of total market value per county, which is calculated by using the most recent market value information, based on property sales for that year.Currently, Molitoris said the information being used for the market value is from 2015, and that the information is then used to reset the millage rates for each county from the prior year, and then calculates the new millage rates for the upcoming year.Molitoris said that four teachers, one at the high school, two at the middle school, and one at Peters Elementary, are set to retire.Other aspects of the budget she highlighted are a decrease in medical by 6 percent, a 2.54 percent increase in the Public School Employees' Retirement System; and $1,750,000 for one-time purchase of equipment and maintenance repairs and/or upgrades.She said in April that the district was able to realize a $300,000 savings in health care costs.Last year, the board on a 7-2 vote adopted this year's budget with a 1.5 percent mill increase in the property tax rates.Molitoris said the district used $1,459,000 from its fund balance to balance that budget.Of that, she said $888,000 was for one-time maintenance costs, such as for rooftop repair at the field house, repair of the track, a hot water heater at the field house, and rooftop units at Peters Elementary.