The Coatesville school board is expected to approve a preliminary budget for the 2008-09 school year that calls for a .8-mill increase in property taxes to cover a $1.7 million increase in spending, pushing total expenditures up to $135.7 million.

Tuesday night the school administration presented the proposed 2007-08 budget to the finance committee. If the tax increase is allowed to stand, it will be the first time in three years homeowners in the district have seen an increase in their school taxes. The current tax rate is 25.7 mills and would rise to 26.5 mills, if the budget is approved, That means a home assessed at $115,592, the district average, would generate $2,879 in school taxes.

School Board President Donna Urban said the small tax increase was needed to avoid a larger tax increases later when the district fund surplus is reduced. The surplus is now at $13 million. The proposed budget calls for drawing down $3.6 million from the surplus.

Board Member Rick Ritter expects the full board will approve the tax increase. Ritter, one of the founding members of the Coatesville Taxpayer's Alliance (CTA), has argued that the district must restrict spending growth and modestly draw down on the surplus to forestall a large tax increase once it is depleted. Last year the school board approved a budget that called for a 10 percent increase in spending; the 2008-09 proposed budget calls for a 3.5 increase in spending.

The administration is hoping to save $2.2 million by bringing back special education students that are now being educated outside the district. The plan now is to distribute the 230 students at Gordon Elementary School to the other six elementary students in the district and turn Gordon into the Gordon Education Center.

The proposed budget also calls for a $2.28 million savings caused by replacing the administrator for the district's health plan. Another $977,227 will be saved because of reduced retirement contributions, according to figures released by Lupold.

The school board is scheduled to adopt the preliminary budget at its April 21 board meeting. The school board meeting has been moved back from April 22 because of primary elections.

The budget will again be discussed at the May finance committee with final adoption expected to take place at the regular May school board meeting.