RALEIGH - As County Manager David Cooke prepares the budget he'll propose to Wake commissioners next week, he'll have to negotiate a projected $51.5 million budget gap.

That's the difference between the new spending requested by county agencies and public schools and the revenue the county expects to collect.

County revenues are expected to climb 4 percent without any tax increase, thanks to growth in the tax base. That gives Cooke nearly $37 million more in revenue than the county had this fiscal year.

But county agencies have asked for more than $88.3 million in new spending, bringing total requests to more than $1 billion.

The biggest increase comes from the Wake County school board, which has requested $54.7 million more in county funding -- $19.7 million more than what Superintendent Del Burns initially proposed.

The trustees of Wake Technical Community College, by contrast, asked the county for a $523,000 cut in spending.

The commissioners said earlier this year they favor a "revenue- neutral" tax rate after the recent revaluation of Wake property.

Keeping that pledge would require the board to lower the current rate from 67 cents per $100 of property value to 50.9 cents to cancel the effect of the higher assessments.

Johnna Rogers, the county budget director, said she has never seen a budget gap as big as the current $51.5 million.

She said Cooke would present a balanced budget to the commissioners that proposes no tax increase and a revenue- neutral tax rate.

But Cooke shied away Monday from any pledges that he wouldn't ask the commissioners for more. Meeting the request from the school board would eat up the county's entire projected revenue increase, without providing for increased spending in any county department.

Commissioner Paul Coble sarcastically asked Rogers what is the highest tax rate his board could legally impose. Rogers said state law put the limit at 150 cents per $100 in assessed value.

Coble then asked, "How much higher will the school board have to go before we get there?"