In a Gazette column from March 2024, Sequim School District Superintendent Regan Nickels wrote about the differences between a bond and levy. She’s also discussed the financial impact for residents at multiple recent meetings.

Here we reprint some of her column and a recent interview as ballots are out now for the Feb. 11 special election with school district leaders asking voters to approve a $145.95 million 20-year bond, and renew a four-year $36.2 million Educational Programs & Operations (EP&O) levy.

In her column, Nickels said Washington’s Constitution calls on the Legislature to amply fund basic education, but that “allocation falls well short of covering the actual expenses incurred from classrooms to counselors, from technology to transportation and of course extra-curricular activities including athletics, music and drama.”

She said local community funding measures — levies and bonds — are vital.

“Levies and bonds bridge the gap between the funds allocated by the state and the actual costs of the school environments where students learn and grow,” Nickels said.

What is a levy?

“Levies are for learning,” she said.

“They are tailored to cover the day-to-day operational needs of a school district not funded by the state.

“From salaries to classroom supplies and maintenance expenses, levies serve as a lifeline for ongoing functions which benefit our students.”

District information reports the levy would also pay for new technology, transportation, extracurricular activities, such as athletics and music, and more.

Levies require a simple majority vote (50% +1 vote). Sequim’s EP&O levy contributes 17% of the district’s annual budget, district staff report.

What are bonds?

“Taking a long-term approach (typically 20-25 years), bonds are the financial cornerstone for capital projects,” Nickels said.

They are intended to help build a new school and/or renovate existing facilities and provide the needed capital, she said.

Bonds require a 60% supermajority approval rate in Washington.

Nickels said in an interview that the $145.95 million 20-year bond is a fixed amount and that hundreds more homes are planned in the coming years for the Sequim area.

“As we see more growth, it’ll reduce the impact of these taxes,” she said.

If both the levy and bond are approved, the schools’ would have an estimated local tax rate of $1.85 per $1,000 of assessed property value, which is an $0.56 increase from this year.

The new rate would start next January.

Staff said the bond would help replace Helen Haller Elementary and many buildings at Sequim High School, add a cafeteria at Greywolf Elementary and a new bus loop at the school and the district’s main campus, update the Transportation Center and the district’s stadium and athletic field and track, and add safety measures and new entrances at each school.

How much more will a homeowner pay?

Nickels said the number one question she’s asked about the levy and bond proposals is “how much more will it cost?”

Each year a home’s value is assessed, and Nickels said they’ve based the estimated increases to homeowners on assessed values from the end of 2024.

District staff estimate that homeowners with a $340,000 assessed value would see an increase of about $190.44 more a year, or $15.87 more a month, starting in 2026.

For the owner of a $485,000 home, approval of the bond and levy would amount to a tax increase of about $23 per month or $276 more a year from 2025’s rate.

According to district staff, Sequim residents paid less in taxes in 2023 for schools than about 80% of other districts in the state (ranked 236 out of 295), and the $1.85 proposed rate is less than Port Angeles School District which passed a construction bond and levy renewal measures in November 2024 with a rate of about $2.70 per $1,000 assessed property value.

For more information about the levy and bond, visit sequimschools.org.