Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
EP&O and capital levies pending
DAVENPORT — The school district will officially ask voters to approve two levies in the February Special Election. The school board approved putting a replacement educational programs and operations (EP&O) levy and replacement capital projects levy before the voters at a regular meeting Monday, Nov. 27.
Both levies would be collected over four years, beginning in 2025 and ending in 2028.
The EP&O levy would collect $1,135,091 in 2025, $1,169,144 in 2026, $1,204,218 in 2027 and $1,240,345 in 2028.
That breaks down to an estimated $2.30 per $1,000 of assessed property value. A taxpayer with a home valued at $300,000 would contribute about $690 to the levy per year.
The levy will fund programs outside the state’s definition of basic education.
The capital projects levy would collect $493,518 in 2025, $508,324 in 2026, $523,573 in 2027 and $539,280 in 2028.
That breaks down to an estimated $1 per $1,000 of assessed property value, meaning a taxpayer with a $300,000 home would contribute about $300 to the levy per year.
The levy would, appropriately to the name, fund projects around the school district that wouldn’t be funded by grants or state monies. It also requires a simple majority to pass.
The combined estimated levy rate of $3.30 per $1,000 is higher than nearby schools like Reardan and Odessa are asking for in the same special election, but is a 35 cent decrease from the $3.65 per $1,000 assessed property value voters are paying in 2024. Next year is the final year of the two current 4-year levies.
Those current levies were overwhelmingly approved by district voters in Feb. 2020.
Skyrocketing property values that hit the Davenport area last year helped offset inflation costs in allowing the district to propose a lower levy for the next cycle, superintendent Chad Prewitt said.
The two levies collected a total of $1,142,000 in 2023.
Editor's Note: The print version of this story contains a typo, thereby incorrectly stating the number that residents with a property valued $300,000 would contribute to the capital projects levy. The correct amount is about $300 per year. The online version of this story was updated Saturday, Dec. 2.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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