School taxes will increase for many Lackawanna County property owners next school year.
All but two school districts with one municipality in the county that operate on a typical fiscal year are raising taxes for the upcoming 2025-26 school year. The Carbondale Area and Riverside school districts did not implement a tax increase in their budgets.
District leaders cited increasing costs in salaries, health care and cyber charter schools as reasons for implementing tax hikes in their district’s budget.
The Scranton School District works on a calendar year budget. Its $225.8 million budget approved at the end of last year didn’t include a tax increase, keeping the milage at 147.8 mills. A mill is a $1 tax on each $1,000 of assessed property value.
The districts that implemented the largest tax increases were Abington Heights, Dunmore, Lakeland, Mid Valley and North Pocono, all of which raised taxes at, around or above 5%.
The North Pocono School District implemented the largest tax increase in Lackawanna County at 8.7% to 178.4643 mills for county residents in the district. The district also implemented a tax increase of less than 1% for residents of Lehigh Twp. in Wayne County to 13.7215 mills. Business Manager Thomas McIntyre said the increase was needed to keep up with rising salary, healthcare and retirement costs.
“These expenditures are approximately 70% of the district’s total budget,” he said.
The tax increase at Abington Heights is being used not only to cover rising costs in salaries, benefits and special education, but to pay the debt service on the construction project underway at the middle school, Business Manager James D. Mirabelli said.
Work is underway on the $49.5 million project, which includes a 70,000-square-foot addition and renovations at the school in Newton Twp. Officials broke ground on the project last week.
At Mid Valley, the 4.64% tax increase to 147.3485 mills will help pay for additional instructional staff and programming in literacy, math and special education, Superintendent Patrick Sheehan said.
Dunmore Business Manager Antoinette Lopatka said the increase in taxes is partially offset by an higher homestead credit given to the district received by the state from gaming revenue. The district implemented a 5.2% tax increase from 154.4617 mills to 162.4937 mills.
School district budgets and their tax impact are:
• Abington Heights: $61.9 million budget, 4.7% tax increase to 148.09 mills. For a property assessed at $21,000, residents will pay $139 more.
• Carbondale Area: $34 million, 134 mills, no tax increase.
• Dunmore: $28 million budget, 5.2% tax increase to 162.4937 mills. A resident with a property valued at $13,000 will pay $104 more.
• Forest City Regional: $19.4 million budget, 4% increase for Vandling residents to 121.06 mills, 6.89% increase to 54.34 mills for Susquehanna County residents and 3.2% increase for Wayne County residents to 12.56 mills. A Vandling resident with a property assessed at $11,000 will pay $67 more, a Susquehanna County resident with a property assessed at $33,000 will pay $77 more and for a Wayne County property assessed at $157,000 will pay $84 more.
• Lackawanna Trail: $25.5 million budget, 3.7% increase for Lackawanna County residents to 203.88 mills, and less than 1% for Wyoming County residents to 92.84 mills. The increase means residents with a property valued at $13,000 in Lackawanna County will pay $95 more and for a property valued at $23,000 in Wyoming County, residents will pay $16 more.
• Lakeland: $30.8 million budget, 5.2% increase to 145.93 mills. For a property assessed at $13,000, residents will pay $94 more.
• Mid Valley: $38.7 million budget, 4.64% increase to 147.3485 mills. A district resident with a property valued at $13,000 will pay $85 more.
• North Pocono: $70.8 million budget, with an 8.7% increase for Lackawanna County residents to 178.4643 mills, and less than 1% increase for residents of Lehigh Twp. to 13.7215 mills. The increase means a Lackawanna County property in the district valued at $19,000 will pay $166 more, while a Leigh Twp. resident with a property valued at $110,000 will pay $56 more.
• Old Forge: $19.6 million budget, 2.4 mill increase to 150 mills. A resident with a property valued at $15,000 will pay $36 more.
• Riverside: $32.6 million budget, 128.73 mills, no tax increase.
• Valley View: $44.9 million budget, 3.2% increase to 141.29 mills. A resident with a property valued at $13,000 will pay $58 more.
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