A report in the Altoona Mirror states that Hollidaysburg superintendent Robert Gildea has suggested that the board raise property taxes to the max of 5% allowed by the act 1 index to try and ward off a potential $3 million deficit in the preliminary budget that the board passed last week. Gildea says that the district really has no alternative on how to close the gap, unless it starts cutting school programs and activities. Gildea says that the state needs to look at how it determines what amounts of money schools get. Gildea says Hollidaysburg is very efficient with spending, but continued rising costs are preventing it from holding the line on taxes.
