More teacher contracts are unsettled this year than last year at the same time in southwestern Pennsylvania, according to the Pennsylvania State Education Association.

"It could be a lot of things: the budget, the economy, the stimulus money. It could be attitudes. It could be anything," said PSEA spokesman Butch Santicola.

Walt Michalski, staff representative for the union, said, "The economy is more of an issue this time around."

There are 23 school districts where teacher contracts are still under negotiation this year, compared to eight districts a year ago. Also, settlements have not been reached in five area vocational-technical schools.

In addition, the state's newest district, Central Valley in Beaver County, is still negotiating how to handle the PSEA contracts from the two districts that merged to form Central Valley -- Monaca, which has two years left on its contract, and Center, which has one year left, Mr. Santicola said.

PSEA represents all but two locals of the region's teachers with unsettled contracts. Chartiers Valley and Upper St. Clair are represented by the American Federation of Teachers -- Pennsylvania.

The lack of settlement doesn't mean strikes are planned. It is common for negotiations to proceed after a contract has expired without a work stoppage.

Statewide, 73 of 125 districts with teacher contracts expiring this year were still negotiating as of Friday, according to the most recent count by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association.

In addition to the 73, there are 10 contracts still open of the 110 that expired a year ago; one open contract that expired in 2007 and another open contract that expired in 2005, bringing the total still being negotiated to 85, said PSBA spokesman David Salter.

Mr. Salter said the PSBA has not noticed any pattern across districts, but he said it is possible that having to negotiate in a "shaky economic climate" could lead to "significant deliberations on both sides."

Here's a list of teacher contracts unsettled in the region:

Allegheny County: Allegheny Valley, Chartiers Valley, Duquesne, Keystone Oaks, Penn Hills, South Allegheny and Upper St. Clair.

Beaver County: Aliquippa, Beaver County Vo-Tech, Big Beaver Falls, Blackhawk and Riverside Beaver.

Butler County: Karns City Area and South Butler.

Cambria County: Richland.

Fayette County: Fayette County Vo-Tech.

Greene County: Southeastern Greene and West Greene.

Indiana County: Blairsville-Saltsburg and Indiana County Vo-Tech.

Mercer County: Mercer County Career Center.

Washington County: Canon-McMillan, Charleroi, Fort Cherry, McGuffey and Washington.

Westmoreland County: Eastern Westmoreland County Career Center and Penn-Trafford.