The 0.1 mill library tax rate for 2013-14 was unanimously approved by the school board at its June 25 meeting.

Lehigh County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michele Varricchio ruled June 19 the district was correct in cutting the rate from 0.3 mill to 0.1 mill.

Because of various changes occurring from the 2012 county reassessment, Parkland administrators adjusted the previous rate of 0.3 downward.

The same procedure was applied to the school district millage in which the 2012-13, 41.9 mill rate was converted to 13.35 mill because of the reassessment.

Although the millage rate is lower, the library will receive an increase in funding from $726,082 last year to $736,856 in 2013-14.

The owner of a $200,000 assessed property will pay $20 in library tax at the 0.1 mill rate.

If the 0.3 mill rate were retained, the library would receive $2.21 milliion in tax revenue from district residents, three times the amount collected last year.

Saying the school district has no authority to adjust the 0.3 rate set by referendum in 1998, the library had filed a court action seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent the school board from adjusting the millage.

After the 9-0 vote for approval of the library tax, board member David Kennedy commented.

"I want to thank Solicitor Steven Miller and the administration for sticking to their guns in this frivolous lawsuit," Kennedy said.

In other business, the board approved numerous insurance programs for 2013-14.

These include workers compensation with an annual premium of $729,570; excess liability, $44,027; student accident insurance, $39,697; boiler machinery, $18,300; and cyber liability, $18,054.

A package policy covering $338,537,312 in property and content value, including a fleet of 185 vehicles, was approved with an annual premium of $375,409.