BUTLER TWP — The Butler School Board approved the district’s preliminary 2013-14 $94 million budget Monday with a two-mill tax increase.

Voting for the budget were Helene Abramowitz, Carmen Bianco, John Conrad, Paula Opalka, Linda Patten and Don Pringle. Voting against were Karen Callihan, Bill Halle and Jim Keffalas.

“You can always reduce a millage increase by June 24 but you can’t increase it,” said Mike Strutt, superintendent, who implored the board to vote for the property tax increase, potentially raising the district’s millage rate to 93.8 mills.

A mill generates $1 for each $1,000 of a property’s assessed value, about $407,000 per mill in the district.

The school board’s final vote is June 24.

The budget has a $2.5 million deficit, but even after that is paid, the district’s fund balance will remain close to the maximum it is permitted to have. The district would have $7.3 million left, which is 7.76 percent of expenditures. That is just under the permitted 8 percent.

In addition, deficits often shrink by the end of the fiscal year, June 30. For example, this year the district anticipated a $2 million deficit which has fallen to $375,064.

“We are making very large expenditure cuts across the board,” said Strutt, referring to $2 million in savings from personnel retirements. “We must bring in some revenue.”

The district’s budget has increased each year since at least 2008-09, when it was $85 million. Like other districts, Butler is struggling with increased employee pension costs and falling state and federal contributions, including the federal budget cuts called sequestration.

“We’re concerned about the years ahead,” said Strutt. “It’s repeating revenue that goes into the budget each year.”

The two mill tax increase would produce about $800,000 this year and each year hereafter, he said.

Employee pension costs are at 12.36 percent of employees’ salaries this year, or $5.2 million. The state reimburses half of the district’s cost for that. Without help from the General Assembly, school pension costs are scheduled to rise to 16.93 percent of employee salaries in 2013-14, about $7.5 million.

The board has dealt with the budget, in part, by reducing teaching staff in the face of falling student enrollment and with nearly-annual tax increases. About 55 teachers have retired in the past three years.

But now parents are complaining about elementary school class sizes and the lack of computer science classes and instructors.

At Monday’s meeting, four parents of Emily Brittain children told the board how their children would suffer if fifth-grade class sizes there increase to 24 to 25 students. Three Emily Brittain teachers each delivered a letter from other parents also decrying the proposed class size increase.

A Center Township parent told the board that kindergarten and first grade classes there with 23 to 25 students are too large.

Carolyn Cornish, assistant superintendent for elementary schools, said the larger classes are not unusual in the district, though classes with 18 to 22 students would be best.

“We have been increasing those class sizes over the past couple of years,” said Cornish, in all the elementary grades.

Cornish said final decisions on class sizes would be made over the summer.

Two adults and two children also appealed to the board not to cut computer science instructors and courses at both the elementary and secondary schools.

“I want to learn more about computers,” said Zoe Giles, who’s father John also spoke. John Giles of Butler, who owns a technology firm, said his hires mainly come from Pittsburgh. The difference between Butler and booming communities are technology jobs, he said.

If the district does end 2013-14 with a $2.5 million deficit, about $1 million would be paid from its fund balance. Another $1 million will come from money the district has saved for employee pensions, and $500,000 will come from a budget reserve, if it remains unspent.

“We’re trying to do the best we can for the kids and the teachers,” said Don Pringle, board president, who called for a balanced approach. “It’s a really hard decision to make ... A two mill tax increase affects the elderly and the retired.”

In addition, the district has many impoverished families. In some elementary schools, 80 percent of children receive free and reduced-price lunches.