BVA doesn’t plan tax hike

By CHRISTINE HAINES

chaines@yourmvi.com

There is no tax increase in the 2020-21 proposed budget, which the Belle Vernon Area School Board is expected to approve tonight.

Once it receives board approval, the proposed budget will be available for public review for at least 20 days before the final vote takes place in June.

If passed, millage will remain at 86.90 for the Westmoreland County municipalities of Rostraver and North Belle Vernon and at 19.89 for the Fayette County municipalities of Washington Township, Belle Vernon and Fayette City.

Because the school district crosses county lines, the state adjusts millage rates to account for differences in assessed versus market values. In Fayette, assessed values are at 100% of market values, while in Westmoreland, assessed values are a fraction of market values for property tax purposes.

Business Manager Crystal Clark said the new document was started from scratch, with each line item carefully considered in constructing the $38.2 million balanced budget.

“There is a lot of uncertainty and the landscape is like nothing we’ve had before,” she said. 

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