A new land assessment to fund the Whidbey Island Conservation District should be put on hold at least until some serious questions are cleared up.

Assessor Dave Mattens raised some excellent concerns before the Island County commissioners this week. The proposal is to assess each landowner a flat fee of $5, plus an additional 5 cents per acre. Proponents hoped this would raise enough money — approximately $240,000 — to help farmers come up with management plans to comply with the new critical areas ordinance.

Though well-intentioned, the fee is poorly timed. As Mattens noted, his office has no firm grasp on how many acres each parcel contains, particularly irregularly-shaped parcels. To be fair, a fee must be assessed accurately. In addition, budget cutting has left his office short-handed and unable to compile the detailed roll of properties and acreages needed to assess the fee.

Also up in the air is the question of whether the assessment is actually a tax in sheep’s clothing. The issue of whether conservation districts can impose a tax through the county commissioners is presently before the state court of appeals. It would be wise to wait for this issue to be settled before proceeding with such an assessment in Island County.

Finally, Island County property owners don’t really need another assessment during a recession. Voters approved a transit sales tax increase, and will hopefully approve a modest Sno-Isle library property tax increase Nov. 3, but this proposal won’t keep the buses rolling or books on the shelves. There’s no hurry to implement the Conservation District assessment. The prudent course of action is to wait until all the questions are answered before making a decision.

The issue will be aired before the Island County commissioners in a special meeting Wednesday, Oct. 14, at 6 p.m. in the county annex building in Coupeville. Whether you’re for it or against it, show up and make your voice heard. It’s how the system works.