PORT ANGELES — Clallam County commissioners have approved a $33,882 contract with K&H Printers of Everett to print special election ballots for two school levies.

After taking testimony from Port Angeles School District levy proponents Tuesday, Commissioners Mike Doherty and Mike Chapman also passed a resolution in support of the maintenance and operations levy.

The Port Angeles School District and the Quillayute Valley School District in Forks each have property tax levies on the Feb. 8 ballot. Ballots will be mailed next week.

Both districts are asking for a small increase over the existing property tax levies.

Commissioner Steve Tharinger was absent from the county meeting. He was working in Olympia as a 24th District state representative.

Chapman sided with levy supporters who said the printing cost is high.

“Apparently, there’s so many rules and regulations now . . . that these ballots can’t just be the normal ballots anymore,” Chapman said.

“I think we have to continue to look at this. For these junior taxing districts, these costs are just enormous — but very difficult for us to absorb.”

Auditor Patty Rosand is in charge of running elections in Clallam County.

County Administrator Jim Jones said printing expenses shot up after the 2000 presidential election when hanging chads were scrutinized in Florida.

Ballots had to be magnetic and tamper-proof after George W. Bush won the disputed contest.

“Now, you have to have these special ballots that are printed and can’t be tampered with and can be read by electronic counters,” Jones said.

Doherty said there was a trade-off in cost when the county went to an all-mail format.

“Staffing all of the polling places was getting quite high,” he said.

“Only about 24 percent of our qualified voters were walking into polling places to vote. They were asking for absentees.

“So there came a time when the labor costs were very high compared to the cost of going to mail.”

Clallam County has had contracts with K&H Printers in the past. Printing services for the special election were put out to bid.

Port Angeles School District Superintendent Jane Pryne and Port Angeles Citizens for Education co-Chairman Steve Methner gave a pro-levy presentation.

No one spoke against it.

In voicing their support for the Port Angeles schools levy, Chapman and Doherty shared anecdotes about teachers and coaches who have gone beyond the call of duty for students and student-athletes like their sons.

“With teachers like that, how can we not support this school district?” Chapman said.

Doherty encouraged district officials to look for efficiencies that could make a “more streamlined, accountable system in education in general.”

In other news, the commissioners voted to approve plans to build a 1,500-foot segment of the Olympic Discovery Trail along the Sol Duc River.

The county will pay a maximum of $20,000, with another $85,000 coming from the U.S. Forest Service Secure Rural Schools fund. The new segment will be located about five miles west of Lake Crescent.

Meanwhile, several appointments were made Tuesday.

Robert Miller, Leo Leonard, Gary Gleason and Nancy Esteb were reappointed to the Clallam County Planning Commission. Their terms will expire at the end of 2014.

Patti Morris was appointed and Marc Reinertson was reappointed to the Animal Issues Advisory Committee. Their terms end in December 2013.

Elaine Fredrickson was reappointed to the North Olympic Library System Board of Trustees for a term that runs through 2015.