It is true, as Sto-Rox school board member Ed Maritz pointed out in December, that the district's spending has gone up 42 percent in the last three years.

What's harder to swallow in the cash-strapped district is that almost half of that increase was due to tuition to charter schools while most of the rest was in facilities upkeep, transportation, retirement, equipment replacement and security -- costs that are hard to control and mostly have little direct impact on education.

"The actual educational budget, the part that we control, has gone up about $400,000," Superintendent Fran Serenka said. "That's less than 1 percent a year."

Even so, the school board has passed its index resolution, promising not raise taxes beyond a state-set amount in the budget to be passed in June.

That's a decision all school districts face in January. If they promise not to raise taxes beyond the state-determined amount, they can wait until June to pass a preliminary budget. If they can't promise to limit a tax hike, they have to prepare a budget in time for a voter referendum on taxes.

Sto-Rox business manager Chuck Lanna said the state-determined amount for Sto-Rox is 6.2 percent, or 1.6 mills.

Ms. Serenka hopes that it does not even come to that. "We wouldn't even want to raise it the index," she said. "We want to do without it."

Sto-Rox's rate is 25 mills -- seventh-highest in the state, according to a measurement called "equalized millage." And small hikes don't mean much. Each mill generates about $275,000 in the district, which encompasses McKees Rocks and Stowe.

And that's not the only revenue drawback.

"We have the highest concentration of public housing of all Allegheny County," Ms. Serenka said, "and, we believe, in the state."

The district has disproportionate numbers in special education, residents needing social support and the number of students opting to attend charter schools.

Propel Montour, a charter school in Kennedy, had 85 Sto-Rox students when it opened a year and a half ago.

That's a financial drain because the district is required to pay a set tuition rate for each child. The total was $3.2 million in 2007-08 out of a $24.3 million budget.

It was $1.1 million in 2004-05.

Mr. Lanna noted that while Sto-Rox's enrollment numbers drop due to children attending other schools, the costs of maintaining buildings and operating buses does not, or at least not substantially. And Ms. Serenka said that the district can't cut staff until a grade level drops by about 24 children.

Mr. Lanna's financial analysis was issued in response to a written set of questions and comments from Dr. Maritz in December.

Dr. Maritz had noted that regular educational spending leaped from $6.2 million in 1906-07 to $8.2 million in 1907-08. Overall, the budget went from $19.7 million in 2004-05 to $24.3 million in 2007-08.

He also, along with board member Elizabeth Smith, voted against a 2 percent raise for Ms. Serenka on Thursday. It was approved by the rest of the board.

Mr. Lanna's analysis noted that along with the $2.1 million hike in tuition over the last three years, facilities work has gone up $823,000 over that time period, transportation has gone up $515,000, retirement $289,000, replacing technology systems $215,000 and security -- including off-duty police officers who are now paid to watch the often-contentious board meeting -- has gone up $210,000.