JACKSON TWP — Seneca Valley school directors on Monday approved a nearly $146 million budget, including a 2% property tax increase for the 2021-22 school year.

The budget, which represents a 4% increase in expenditures from the 2020-21 year, was approved by an 8-0 vote with one director absent.

While the district increased its expenses by more than $5 million — to $145,712,582 — the budget also marked a revenue increase of more than $9 million, bringing that total to $141,492,410.

The deficit, of roughly $4.22 million, will be covered with a transfer from the district's fund balance, which essentially acts as Seneca Valley's savings account.

Seneca Valley taxpayers will see a tax increase from 127.89 mills, which remained the same in both 2019-20 and 2020-21, to 130.45 mills. For a house with a market value of $263,750 — the median homestead in Seneca Valley — taxpayers will pay roughly $58 more for the year. It's the largest tax increase district property owners have seen since the 2016-17 school year, with two tax increases of 2.44% and 1.5%, and two years of no tax increases since.

Board president Eric DiTullio said the tax increases are small and are part of the district's longer-term outlook on budgeting. He said the goal of a longer-term view is to prevent “peaks and valleys” for Seneca Valley's finances.

“I'm very proud of what the board has done,” he said.

Roughly 63% of the district's expenditures will go toward instruction, with an additional 26.3% budgeted for instructional support services. About $10 million — or 7% — will go toward paying off the district's debt, and less than 2% is budgeted for noninstructional support services and facilities acquisition and improvement.

Seneca Valley will hold $2.5 million in contingency to account for any potential budget overages.