School levies in Napavine, Pe Ell and Evaline were passing as of initial results of the special election on Tuesday night, according to the Lewis County Auditor’s Office.
Levy proposals in Onalaska, White Pass and Winlock were failing as of the first tally.
A total of 5,364 ballots have been counted in Lewis County thus far, with the next count set to be released at 5 p.m. Wednesday. Voter turnout is estimated at 29.8%.
The election will be certified on Feb. 21.
In Napavine, a levy proposal was barely passing as of Tuesday, with 482 (50.31%) voters in favor and 476 (49.69%) in opposition.
A levy requires 50 percent of voters plus one vote for passage.
The Napavine School District Replacement Educational Programs and Operations Levy would, if passed, replace the Napavine School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new three-year levy that allows the district to collect $1,427,536 in property taxes in 2026, $1,498,913 in 2027, and $1,573,858 in 2028. The estimated levy rate would be $1.55 per $1,000 of assessed value for all three years.
The levy would be used to fund Napavine School District education programs and operations that are not fully funded by the state, such as staffing to reduce class sizes, transportation, technology upgrades, maintenance, special education programs, after school programs and extracurriculars.
In Pe Ell, a levy was passing on Tuesday with 243 voters (64.97%) in favor and 131 voters (35.03%) opposed.
The Pe Ell School District Replacement Educational Programs and Operation Levy, if passed, would replace the Pe Ell School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new two-year levy that would allow the district to collect $480,000 in property taxes in 2026 and 2027. The estimated levy rate would be $1.12 per $1,000 of assessed value in 2026 and $1.08 in 2027.
The levy would be used to fund Pe Ell School District education programs and operations that are not fully funded by the state, such as athletics and activities, student food, health and counseling services, student transportation costs, technology improvements, STEM programs, professional development and training for staff, infrastructure costs and special education costs.
In the Evaline School District, 148 voters were in favor of a proposed levy while 74 voters were opposed.
The Evaline School District Replacement Educational Programs and Operations Levy, if passed, would replace the Evaline School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new two-year levy that would allow the district to collect up to $269,000 in property taxes in 2026 and 2027. The estimated levy rate would be $0.92 per $1,000 of assessed value in 2026 and $0.88 in 2027. The funding would pay part of the cost of educational programs and operations within the Evaline School District, such as class size reduction, after school activities, music, technology upgrades, and other operations not funded by the state.
In the Winlock School District, a proposed levy was failing on Tuesday, with 496 voters in favor (47.37%) and 551 voters (52.63%) opposed.
The Winlock School District Educational Programs and Operations Replacement Levy, if passed, would replace the Winlock School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new three-year levy that would allow the district to collect $1,680,000 in property taxes in 2026, $1,900,00 in 2027 and $2,100,000 in 2028. The estimated levy rate would be $1.27 per $1,000 of assessed value for all three years.
The levy would be used to fund Winlock School District education programs and operation expenses that are not fully covered by the state, such as extracurricular programs, special education, staffing costs, classroom technology, academic and behavioral support, student safety and security, and general maintenance and equipment costs.
In the Onalaska School District, a proposed levy was failing as 644 voters (47.85%) were in favor and 702 voters (52.15%) were opposed as of Tuesday night.
The Onalaska School District Educational Programs and Operation Replacement Levy, if passed, would replace the Onalaska School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new three-year levy that would allow the district to collect up to $1,891,440 in property taxes in 2026, $1,948,184 in 2027 and $2,006,629 in 2028. The estimated levy rate would be $1.25 per $1,000 of assessed value for all three years.
The levy would be used to fund Onalaska School District education programs and operations that are not fully funded by the state, such as athletics and activities, health and counseling services, student transportation costs, technology staffing, equipment improvements, staff professional development and training, special education costs, utilities maintenance, preschool programs, and enhanced security measures.
In the White Pass School District, a proposed levy was failing by a slim margin on Tuesday night with 496 voters (47.37%) in favor and 520 voters (51.18%) opposed.
The White Pass School District School Programs and Operations Replacement Levy, if passed, would replace the White Pass School District’s existing levy, which expires at the end of 2025, with a new four-year levy that would allow the district to collect $1,197,644 in property taxes in 2026, 2027, 2028 and 2029. The estimated levy rate would be $0.79 per $1,000 of assessed value all four years.
The funding would be used to cover White Pass School District education program and operation expenses that are not fully covered by the state, such as teachers, support staff, technology, curriculum, athletics, facility maintenance and operations.
Elsewhere, the Castle Rock District’s proposed levy was passing on election night, with 1,092 voters (52.15%) in favor and 1,002 voters (47.85%) opposed.
Additionally, voters backed an effort to merge Lewis County Fire District 17 with Pierce County Fire District 23 with 64 voters in favor and 6 opposed.
See more about the election at https://elections.lewiscountywa.gov/current-election/.
