Keystone Oaks School District Sitting On $7.7 Million: Study

DORMONT, PA - Pennsylvania’s 500 school districts continue to hoard large reserve funds and Keystone Oaks is no exception. The district had $7.7 million in reserve during 2016-17, a study by the Harrisburg conservative Commonwealth Foundation revealed.

The $7.7 million was a $1.9 million increase in reserves over 2015-16, according to the foundation, which used state Department of Education figures for the study. It also represents 19.1 percent of total district spending in 2016-17; state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale has said districts should not keep fund balances exceeding 20 percent of their total expenditures.

Overall, school district reserves for 2016-17 increased by $139 million over the previous year to reach an all-time high of $4.5 billion.

“School districts now hold enough money to cut every Pennsylvania student a $2,860 check,” Nathan Benefield, Commonwealth Foundation vice president and chief operating officer, said in a release. “While ‘rainy day’ funds are necessary at some level, nearly half of school districts have fund balances exceeding 20 percent of total spending.”

Despite Keystone Oaks having millions in reserve, the district’s 2016-17 budget contained a .4471 mill increase to 19.0771 mills. The district’s first tax increase since 2013-14 increased property tax bills on a home assessed at $100,000 by $44.71 annually.

“The Board and the administration has worked diligently to manage and examine expenses in order to present a budget that does not impact the quality of the education at Keystone Oaks,” Sharon Gologram, Keystone Oaks director of fiscal services, said when the budget was approved.

The district maintained the millage rate for the current school year. The 2018-19 budget, scheduled to be adopted June 19, also keeps the current millage.

Image via Shutterstock.

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