2026-2027 Budget
Summary
The Fox Chapel Area School Board adopted the 2026-2027 final budget at its regular business meeting June 8, 2026. The budget calls for expenditures of $125,489,654 and revenues of $123,549,707. The budget will be balanced via a 3.1% tax increase and the utilization of a portion of the fund balance. The millage increase falls below the 3.5% Act 1 index increase allowed by the state. The millage rate for 2026-2027 is 22.6898 mills. Each mill generates approximately $3.7 million for the school district.
The final budget reflects the following:
- Increased personnel costs
- Salary and benefit costs comprise more than 70% of the budget.
- Insurance premium increases
- 8.3% for medical coverage
- 3% for dental coverage
- Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS) employer contribution rate set at 33.59% for 2026-2027
- This accounts for 14% of the overall budget. The state reimburses the district 50% of the costs.
- 3.1% tax increase
- Represents low increases in real estate values due to real estate appeals and low increases in proposed state funding
- Basic Education Subsidy – 1.7% increase
- Special Education Subsidy – 1.3% increase
- Represents low increases in real estate values due to real estate appeals and low increases in proposed state funding
- Transfer of $1,937,418 to capital projects fund
- The funds will support future capital project costs as part of the district’s multiphase capital projects plan.
Future Challenges
- Assessment value reductions due to Allegheny County assessment appeals
- PSERS contributions continue to be a challenge for school districts in Pennsylvania.
- The employer contribution rate is set by PSERS trustees, not by the district.
- The district anticipates paying more than $44 million in PSERS contributions during the next five years.
- Projected multiphase capital projects plan
- Projects address repairs, replacements, and upgrades to the equipment and infrastructure of aging district facilities.
Gaming Funds Distribution
The Pennsylvania Department of Education will provide the Fox Chapel Area School District with $2,562,436 in gaming funds. The method of distributing the gaming funds, as prescribed by Act 1, the Taxpayer Relief Act, will be via the implementation of the homestead exclusion. Under this provision, any property in the school district approved by Allegheny County as a homestead will have the lesser of its taxable value, or an estimated $14,456, excluded for calculating school district real estate taxes for the 2026 tax year. Based on the final budget, the owners of the 7,812 properties in the district that qualified for the homestead exclusion will receive a $328 reduction in their property taxes. Property owners who do not have an approved homestead exclusion will have the opportunity to apply again when the district mails letters to those homeowners in December 2026.