Washington Township faces roughly $7 million budget gap; board weighs tax-levy adjustments and using reserves

Washington Township School District officials told the board at a budget retreat that the district is facing an estimated $7,000,000 shortfall and must balance using one-time reserves, seeking tax-levy adjustments and identifying operating cuts.

Janine, the district administrator presenting the budget slides, said the district’s 2024–25 fund balance generated about $7.4 million above the required 2% minimum but overall surplus declined nearly $3 million year over year. “We were looking at about a $7,000,000 deficit,” Janine said, explaining that contractual increases in salaries and benefits are outpacing allowable revenue growth.

The presentation identified health-benefit renewals as a major driver: Janine said state health-benefit rates are currently around 31.8–31.9% and described how districts can apply a tax-levy adjustment to cover benefit increases that exceed the 2% cap. She estimated the tax-levy adjustment related to benefits could yield roughly $4,000,000, while noting that taking the adjustment plus the base 2% increase — and any makeup of prior-year local fair share left on the table — could materially raise the levy.

At public comment, a resident who identified himself as Mister Lindsay warned the board that recently agreed contracts “are gonna create an $8,000,000 deficit” and urged those he said were not serving the district well to resign. “I’m scared to death that my taxes are gonna go up again exponentially,” he said.

Board members and administrators discussed options: using a portion of the one-time fund balance to close near-term gaps, pursuing a health-benefit levy adjustment, or identifying personnel and operating reductions. Janine cautioned that tapping one-time surplus for operating costs creates recurring risk: if the surplus is not replenished, the district could face structural deficits and potential credit pressure.

The board agreed to continue detailed budget work in committee meetings and set a tentative budget presentation and statutory deadlines; members moved into executive session later to discuss personnel but did not take public action at the retreat.

The district did not present final figures for all options at the retreat; board members asked staff to return with scenarios showing the tax-levy impact and prioritized cuts before the tentative budget is advertised.