Tunkhannock Area School District - Budget

Budget

In 2009, the district reported employing 294 teachers and administrators with a median salary of $56,773 and a top salary of $107,543. The teacher’s work day is 7.5 hours with a duty free lunch and daily preparation period. The teachers work 185 days in the contract year (182 pupil instruction). Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension, health insurance (employee pays 1% of salary towards premium), dental insurance, life insurance, an accident death insurance plan, professional development reimbursement, 2 paid personal days, 10 paid sick days, and other benefits. Teachers who have been at the district for 12 years or more receive an added benefit of $50 per unused sick or personal day. In 2011, the average teacher salary in Tunkhannock Area School District was $57,815.03 a year, while the cost of the benefits teachers receive was $18,043.50 per employee, for a total annual average teacher compensation of $75,858.53. According to a study conducted at the American Enterprise Institute, in 2011, public school teachers’ total compensation is roughly 50 percent higher than they would likely receive in the private sector. The study found that the most generous benefits that teachers receive are not accounted for in many studies of compensation including: pension, retiree health benefits and job security.

For the 2011-12 school year the School Board and teachers union agreed to a one year contract which froze salaries. The freeze did not include step increases nor an increase in tuition reimbursement. In exchange for the pay freeze the Board agreed to not layoff teachers in response to declining enrollment. In 2011, 25 teachers resigned. In June 2012, the Board announced the elimination of more than 30 faculty positions due to declining enrollment and fiscal challenges.

Tunkhannock Area School District administrative costs per pupil in 2008 was $608.34 per pupil. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398 per pupil. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association collects and maintains statistics on salaries of public school district employees in Pennsylvania. According to the association's report, the average salary for a superintendent, for the 2007-08 school year, was $122,165. Superintendents and administrators receive a benefit package commensurate with that offered to the district's teachers' union.

In 2008, the district administration reported that per pupil spending was $12,709 which ranked 197th among Pennsylvania's 501 school districts. In 2010 the per pupil spending had increased to $13,901.85. Among the states, Pennsylvania’s total per pupil revenue (including all sources) ranked 11th at $15,023 per student, in 2008-09. In 2007, the Pennsylvania per pupil total expenditures was $12,759. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that Pennsylvania spent $8,191 per pupil in school year year 2000-01.

Reserves In 2008, the district reported a balance of $3,843,466.00 in an unreserved-undesignated fund. The unreserved-designated fund balance was reported as zero. In 2010, Tunkhannock Area Administration reported an increase to $4,400,331 in the unreserved-undesignated fund and a balance of 4,400,331 in the reserved fund. Pennsylvania school district reserve funds are divided into two categories – designated and undesignated. The undesignated funds are not committed to any planned project. Designated funds and any other funds, such as capital reserves, are allocated to specific projects. School districts are required by state law to keep 5 percent of their annual spending in the undesignated reserve funds to preserve bond ratings. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, from 2003 to 2010, as a whole, Pennsylvania school districts amassed nearly $3 billion in reserved funds.

In April 2012, the Pennsylvania Auditor General conducted a performance audit of the District. Significant findings included Overpayment of Subsidies and Reimbursements which were reported to the School Board and the District’s administration.

The district is funded by a combination of: a local income tax, a property tax, a real estate transfer tax 0.5%, coupled with substantial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government. Interest earnings on accounts also provide nontax income to the district. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pension income and Social Security income are exempted from state personal income tax and local earned income tax, regardless of the level of the individual’s personal wealth.