JEFFERSON TWP — The idea of a tax decrease did not come up on Wednesday evening, when the South Butler School Board voted to approve next year's final budget without a property tax increase.

The $35 million budget was approved 8 to 1 with little discussion.

When the preliminary budget was passed in May, board members Matt Cimbala, Rebecca Boyd, Jill McDonald and Donna Eakin suggested a 2-mill tax decrease in 2019-20 due to lower health insurance costs expected in the district next year.

Upon the final budget on Wednesday, all four voted in favor of the zero-mill increase without explanation.

Board member George Zacherl said while he favors no tax increase, he voted against the budget because he has concerns about the more than $4 million in necessary repairs throughout the district that were listed on a feasibility study recently completed.

He said the district will have a total of $3.3 million to spend on capital improvement projects in the new budget.

That shows a lack of planning, Zacherl said.

“I don't think we have a vision of what we're doing,” he said.

There were no changes to the budget between the preliminary version passed in May and the final budget passed on Wednesday.