ORWIGSBURG - The deficit in the Blue Mountain School District budget keeps getting smaller but still is not where it needs to be.
A handout from the district showed a $423,051 deficit, down from the $684,889 deficit earlier this month.
Revenues are at $38,162,464, while expenses are at $38,585,515.
During a committee of the whole meeting, school board members discussed the budget.
"We still have some significant work to do on the budget," board member John Granito said.
The board must have a budget approved by June 30.
At a public budget meeting earlier this month, district officials told the public about the budget and provided information on options the district could consider to close the gap.
They included changes to elementary class size; instrumental music in fourth and fifth grade; elementary art in kindergarten through fifth grade; elementary music in kindergarten through fifth grade; elementary physical education in kindergarten through fifth grade; instrumental music in sixth, seventh and eighth grades; middle school sports and district-wide special education.
Superintendent Robert Urzillo said instrumental music in fourth and fifth grade and in the middle school could potentially be eliminated, along with middle school sports.
Also, the district is considering how it can become more efficient in special education.
Urzillo said elementary class sizes could be increased at the elementary level. However, he said at the meeting Thursday that is not something he wanted done.
"I can't in good conscience recommend that," he said about increasing class sizes at the elementary level.
District Business Administrator Michelle Diekow said the district could do several things to get extra cash. The district could raise taxes above the Act 1 index and use money from the internal service fund to offset costs for health insurance of which about $200,000 is available or use money from other funds.
The current millage for the 2013-14 school year is 36.275 mills. The school board voted in January for a preliminary budget with a tax increase of 0.9794 mills, bring the rate to 37.2544. That would equate to an extra $51.49 for the average house assessed at $52,600, if the board voted for the entire tax increase.
With the retirement contributions and special education expenditures applied for and approved by the state Department of Education, the millage rate could increase another 1.1613, which would cost the taxpayers an additional $61.02.
A mill brings in $454,000 for the district.
Board member David Lafko said the district has to make some tough decisions.
"We can only push this down the road so long," he said.
Granito said he is not in favor of cutting programs.
Board President Heather Gosch said she did not want to raise taxes more then allowed.
The board went into executive session near the end of the meeting to discuss a personnel matter but could not discuss it before coming back out for a vote, Urzillo said.
The next school board meeting is 7:15 p.m. May 22 at the middle school.