Both North Olympic Peninsula counties are reporting voter turnouts of more than 40 percent in Tuesday’s special elections for school district levies.
Auditor reports at the end of last week showed a total turnout of 44.8 percent in Jefferson County and at least 40.82 percent in Clallam County.
Four public school districts in East Jefferson County — Port Townsend, Chimacum, Quilcene and Brinnon — and one in West Jefferson County — Queets Clearwater — are asking voters to approve property tax levies.
One public school district in Clallam County — the Crescent School District in Joyce — is requesting voters approve a levy.
Ballots must be postmarked by Tuesday or placed in an official drop box by 8 p.m. that day.
The first results will be announced that night.
The latest figures in Jefferson County, reported Friday, showed that a total of 9,546 ballots, or 44.9 percent — with 89 undeliverable — had been received of the 21,280 ballots mailed, a number that does not include replacement ballots.
None of the Jefferson County elections is countywide. Ballots were mailed to registered voters in individual districts.
Since then, some replacement ballots have been issued.
The latest count of ballots received in the all-mail election in Clallam County was Thursday, when the Auditor’s Office reported 720 ballots returned out of 1,764 mailed for the Crescent School District’s request for a four-year, $495,713 maintenance and operation expenses levy.
The estimated levy rate would be $1.615 per $1,000 assessed value, or $323 per year for a $200,000 home.
It would replace a levy that expires this year but at higher rate than the one now in place, which has a levy rate of $1.40 per $1,000 assessed value.
That’s because of state and federal budget cuts, which in three years have carved $600,000 from the district’s budget, which is now $3 million.
Uses of Crescent levy
The levy the district is requesting would fund staff salaries for the district’s librarian, academic counselor and foreign language teacher, and would pay for curriculum materials, food service, all-day kindergarten programs and to replace technology, Anderson said.
If voters reject the levy request, those items could be on the table for consideration for cuts, Anderson said, though that would be a last resort after researching voters’ desires again and considering postponing more maintenance.
The Crescent School District website is at www.crescentschooldistrict.org.
Representatives of all four districts in East Jefferson County said approval of the ballot measures would not increase property taxes since they replace levies that expire this year.
Port Townsend and Chimacum are asking for new capital levies to replace facilities, while Brinnon and Quilcene seek maintenance and operations levies that support school programs.
PT district
In the Port Townsend district, where voters are being asked to approve a four-year capital levy that would generate $1,181,500 each year for a total of $4,726,000, 4,758 ballots, or 44.2 percent, of the 10,773 issued — both those mailed and replacement ballots — had been returned as of Friday.
The estimated amount per $1,000 assessed value the levy would cost property owners is 51 cents the first year and 58 cents each of the following years.
Facilities in all schools except Blue Heron Middle School are in need of repairs, officials have said.
Systems that need repair or replacement include fire protection and sprinkler systems, piping and plumbing, carpets, doors and hardware, and the phone system, as well as seismic upgrades.
Information about Port Townsend is available at http://tinyurl.com/2c3yft5.
Chimacum district
Chimacum district voters, who are considering a six-year capital projects levy that would raise $1,325,000 each year for a total of $7,950,000, had returned 3,724 ballots, or 45.2 percent, of the 8,231 issued by Friday.
The estimated amount per $1,000 assessed value the levy would cost property owners is, in order from 2013 to 2018, 81 cents, 80 cents, 84 cents, 83 cents, 83 cents and 82 cents.
Among systems needing work is the district boiler, phone system, roofs, siding and electrical, officials have said.
Chimacum’s site is at www.csd49.org.
Quilcene district
In the Quilcene district, where voters are asked to approve a four-year maintenance and operations levy that would collect $495,500 its first year and increase to $540,095 the fourth year, 539 ballots, or 42.6 percent, of the 1,264 issued had been returned.
The estimated amount per $1,000 assessed value the levy would cost property owners is, in order from 2012-2013 through 2015-2016, $1.46 the first year, $1.51 the second year, $1.55 the third year and $1.60 the fourth year.
The levy revenue would be used for student health and safety services, special programs, technology, facility maintenance, textbooks and supplies, breakfast and lunch programs, bus transportation and extracurricular activities, officials have said.
Quilcene has posted information at http://tinyurl.com/7a4srau.
Brinnon district
The highest voter turnout so far has been in the tiny Brinnon district, which serves students in preschool through eighth grade.
Brinnon voters had returned 494 ballots, or 51.7 percent, of the 955 issued in an election seeking a two-year property tax levy that would raise $239,653 the first year and $299,526 the second year.
The estimated amount per $1,000 assessed value the levy would cost property owners is $1.08 in 2013 and $1.10 in 2014.
Brinnon officials hope the levy will support the purchase of textbooks and materials, unfunded special-education requirements, building maintenance and repairs, breakfast and lunch programs, preschool, utility and other operating expenses and non-high payments to neighboring high schools.
Brinnon has posted information at www.bsd46.org.
On the West End, voters in the Queets Clearwater district, which serves grades kindergarten through 8, had returned 31 ballots, or 31.3 percent, of the 99 issued in the election requesting a three-year, $75,000 educational programs and programs replacement levy.
In Clallam County, ballots that aren’t mailed can be hand-delivered to the drop box by 8 p.m. or to the Auditor’s Office at the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St., during regular business hours.
In Jefferson County, marked ballots can be mailed or returned to the Auditor’s Office in the Jefferson County Courthouse, 1820 Jefferson St., Port Townsend, or dropped into a box in the back parking lot of the courthouse or in the parking lot of the Jefferson County Library, 620 Cedar Ave., Port Hadlock.
For information about the Clallam County election, phone 360-417-2217, visit www.clallam.net/elections or go to the Auditor’s Office.
For more information about the Jefferson County election, phone 360-385-9119 or email karenc@co.jefferson.wa.us.
