Cheerleading is one of many extracurricular activities funded by local-option Educational Programs and Operations levies.

With ballots arriving soon, the time has come to reaffirm our belief in Pacific County kids by voting for the levies proposed by the Ocean Beach, Naselle, South Bend and Raymond school districts. Mail-in balloting ends at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 13. We all should take a minute to vote yes in our respective districts, and mail ballots in post-paid envelopes or place them in drop boxes

Passing school levies is one of the essential obligations of citizenship in Washington state, where we treasure high-quality local education. Pacific County voters have an outstanding record of approving this vital funding.

The proposed levies are all replacements for existing modest taxes that will otherwise expire. Levies typically last four years between re-authorizations by voters. They require a simple majority vote to pass. (This is in contrast with school-construction bonds, which require a 60% super-majority to approve long-term debt. We are not voting on a bond this year.)

Each district seeks renewal of its Educational Programs and Operations (EP&O) levy, which allows them to provide things like teachers, support staff, supplies and materials, or services that the state only partially funds. Funding provided by the state does not fully cover the actual costs to operate a school district, so these levies bridge the gap.

Pull Quote

Passing school levies is one of the essential obligations of citizenship in Washington state, where we treasure high-quality local education. Pacific County voters have an outstanding record of approving this vital funding.

In addition, Ocean Beach is renewing its technology levy, which ensures that every student has access to grade-appropriate computers, software, support staff and online security.

Despite the long, hard-fought state Supreme Court McCleary case that many hoped would eliminate the need for local levies, they remain crucial to pay for a host of things most of us consider to be intrinsic to the K-12 educational experience — everything from prep sports to school nurses, and even some teaching staff. After McCleary, the state provides around three-quarters of what districts need — not that much more than it did before the Legislature’s efforts to answer the Supreme Court’s mandate. Local voters pay for the rest via levies, supplemented by a little federal aid.

While harboring some irritation that full funding for K-12 education apparently means something different in Olympia than it does in rural Washington, local levies clearly allow local voters and the school boards we elect to enact budgets reflective of many of our own priorities. We all must continue supporting them for as long as they are needed.

Thanks to new construction and rising property values — that are slowly factored into how much money levies generate — levy amounts in the beach district have trended downward. The levy we’re voting on now is set at 92 cents per $1,000 in assessed property value — 45 cents less than we approved four years ago and more than a dollar less than eight years ago. The new technology levy will raise 19 cents per $1,000, a dime less than the one approved in 2020. As with all our local and state taxes, we owe thanks to our many part-time non-voting residents, who help us pay for things from which they receive little direct benefit.

The Naselle-Grays River levy request is for $1.27 per $1,000, Raymond $1.97 and South Bend for $1.94 diminishing to $1.63 by 2028. Smaller tax bases in these districts mean they have to ask for higher rates than Ocean Beach.

This all appears reasonably conservative. So, once again, as we have for decades, it’s time to say yes to school levies and yes to a positive future for all Pacific County kids.

For more information about the Ocean Beach levy proposal, see www.ocean.k12.wa.us and click on Community Resources, or email Superintendent Amy Huntley at amy.huntley@oceanbeachschools.org.