While its budget is still in the preliminary stages, the Whitehall-Coplay School Board discussed removing $24,000 in funding for the Coplay Public Library.

The discussion occurred during the finance committee meeting on March 25.

Board member Robert Kolb brought up a concern about the Coplay library's referendum. During the May 21 primary, voters will be asked whether they approve a 0.38-mill tax dedicated to funding the library. If passed, homeowners would pay $38 per $100,000 of assessed property value to keep the library open.

If the referendum does not pass, the library may be forced to close, library officials have said.

"I don't want to do anything that would have an adverse effect on the referendum," Kolb said. "Would that [$24,000] be enough to get others to vote against it? Are they [the library] better off with a zero?"

Treasurer Arthur Taschler Jr. replied, "I'm more worried about my [the district's] bottom line than the library's."

Superintendent John Corby brought up a letter from Coplay Borough Council members which stated the district could phase out funding.

The handwritten, undated memo asked for "one-time wind down funding of $48,000" for the 2012-13 school year.

"We have no agreement," Taschler said. "We don't have any additional obligation."

When asked for further comment after the April 8 meeting, Business Manager Robert Strauss said the removal of the $24,000 will be reflected in the next discussion of the preliminary budget to take place at the April 22 committee meeting.

"[The removal] was based upon a proposal from Coplay council to phase out the district's contribution," he said.

Library board President Natalie Reichl said Corby contacted her after the March 25 meeting to say the library funding had been cut from the budget. She said the cut will not make or break the library budget.

"The dedicated tax from the referendum is meant to replace the contributions from the school district," she told The Press April 9. "Therefore, if the referendum passes, we will have the $72,000 replaced. Coplay Borough's annual funding of $16,500, in addition to the money from the Commonwealth, allows us to be on even ground."

The budget must be passed in its final form by the end of June.

"It's too early to say anything until the budget is passed in June," said Corby. "Budget numbers change in both directions."