BUTLER TWP — Students who drive to school in the Butler School District will pay three times more for a parking pass this fall than they have before.

The Butler School Board on Monday night approved a fee increase from $25 to $75 a year to reflect an increase in parking lot maintenance costs. Salt alone cost more than $15,000 this school year, officials said.

About 500 students, including juniors and seniors at the high school and a few sophomores at the intermediate school, bought parking permits this school year.

The money from permits goes for maintenance, including salt purchases, parking lot repair, security employees and additional security cameras.

To compare with parking fees at other schools, Knoch High School charges $50, Seneca Valley charges $120, Mars charges $150, and Karns City and Slippery Rock both charge $35.

Board members also discussed the possibility of conducting random drug searches in vehicles.