PORT ANGELES — City Council members had to stifle their opinions last week following a presentation on a proposed Feb. 14 Port Angeles School District property tax levy, which affects thousands of their constituents and would fund about one-quarter of district operations for 2018-21.
Superintendent Marc Jackson and Assistant Superintendent Chuck List outlined the $36.4 million, four-year, 2018-2021 measure at the council’s regular meeting Tuesday.
It would collect an estimated $9.1 million annually and requires a simple majority of voters to say yes for approval.
But City Attorney Bill Bloor told council members that under state law they could listen to and ask questions of Jackson and List but could not express their individual opinions or give a collective endorsement.
They can do that only after the public has a chance to weigh in on the measure at the council’s next meeting at City Hall at 6 p.m. Jan. 17, just eight days before the Jan. 25 mailing of ballots to more than 20,850 voters — more than 12,400 of whom live in the city limits and are represented by the council.
“After the council hears that pro and con, then the council could take action to endorse or reject,” Bloor said.
Clallam County commissioners, who face the same restriction as City Council members, also will consider endorsing the measure.
The commissioners will accept public comment on the levy at their regular meeting at 10 a.m. Tuesday in the county courthouse before considering Administrator Jim Jones’ recommendation to give it a thumbs-up.
“The [board of county commissioners] has a long history, when asked by the school districts, of urging voters to support school levies across the county,” Jones said in the commissioners’ agenda packet for the meeting.
The four-year measure would replace a two-year levy that expires Dec. 31 and funds 22 percent of the district’s operating budget, according to the district.
The levy that will be replaced generated $8.6 million in 2016 and will generate an estimated $8.7 million in 2017.
The measure would collect an estimated $3.30 per $1,000 of assessed valuation in 2018, or $660 annually for the owner of a $200,000 home.
The per-$1,000 valuation would decrease to an estimated $3.20 per $1,000 annually by 2021, or $640.
The rate was predicted to be $3.26 per $1,000 in 2016 and turned out to be $3.20, according to the district.
The levy will fund a variety of district functions including student transportation, athletics, music programs, special education and basic education, Jackson told council members Tuesday.
“These programs are really what makes Port Angeles very unique,” he said.
“It’s why families move here.”
Jackson’s and List’s PowerPoint presentation mirrored the graphics and other information on the school district’s website, www.portangeles schools.org.
Mayor Patrick Downie was absent from the meeting for medical reasons.
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Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
