Chester County schools are suffering daily financial consequences while state leaders muddy the waters with talk of two different budgets — and neither of them doling out real money.

“We can’t go back to taxpayers and say we’re going to raise taxes to 5 percent because the state didn’t give us anything,” Spring-Ford Area School Board President Joe Ciresi said in a NewsWorks report.

But schools are running out of options. At one extreme, districts like Reading Area are paying $800 a day in interest on a $20 million loan because it relies on the state to provide 73 percent of its budgeted income. Statewide, loans balances shot up to $900 million by the end of the year, and more than half of that is Philadelphia’s $525 million.

In Chester County, the long-running budget impasse is hitting Avon Grove, Oxford and Coatesville Area school districts hardest, as their budgets are most reliant on state funding — though far less dependent than Reading.

Sorted by how much of their total budget the state provides, according to NewsWorks, here is Chester County by the numbers:

• Avon Grove: 34.23 percent
• Oxford: 33.1 percent
• Coatesville Area: 30.06
• Octorara Area: 25.4
• Twin Valley: 23.55
• Owen J. Roberts: 18.82
• Downingtown Area: 18.48
• Kennett Consolidated: 17.93
• Spring-Ford Area: 17.7
• Phoenixville Area: 14.98
• Unionville-Chadds Ford Area: 14.97
• West Chester Area: 14.36
• Tredyffrin-Easttown: 13.15
• Great Valley: 12.69

At another extreme, some Pennsylvania districts are hurling blame toward Harrisburg and launching threats of not passing local budgets in protest.

“Until we know more about the funding, it makes it very difficult when you have two budgets you’re looking at right now,” Morrisville School District Business Manager Michael Braun said.

Read more about school districts’ financial plight on NewsWorks here, and check out previous VISTA Today coverage of the budget impasse here.