Voters in the Coupeville School District will likely be asked to replace two levies that support programs and operations as well as technology and capital spending in a Feb. 10 election.
The proposals will increase property tax rates, but at an amount that will still place the Coupeville School District’s rate among the lowest in the region, according to a district presentation.
The school board unanimously passed a motion that directs the superintendent to prepare resolutions for replacement of the Educational Programs and Operations levy and the Capital Projects Technology levy. The board will vote to finalize the resolutions and place the measure on the ballot at a meeting Thursday.
The two levies currently generate a total of $3.2 million a year. The district estimates that the proposed replacement levies would generate a combined total of $4.6 million in 2027, the first year it would go into effect.
If both levies pass, the owner of a house worth $500,000 would pay an extra $110 per year, from $340 in 2026 to $450 in 2027.
If passed, the programs and operations levy — which support arts and athletics — would increase to an estimated rate of 78 cents per $1,000 in 2027. As property values increase, the rate is projected to decrease each year to 71 cents in 2030. The levy would generate nearly $4 million in 2027 and increase to about $4.7 million in 2030.
For 2025, the rate is set at 67 cents, according to the school district.
A capital projects technology levy, on the other hand, funds school district technology, enhanced building security and renovation projects, Superintendent Shannon Leatherwood said during her presentation to the board. As estimated, the rate would essentially remain at about 12 cents if the measure passes.
EP&O levies can be approved for up to four years. A capital project can be approved for up to six years, according to 2025 Educational Service District 112.
State funds cover 77% of the district’s budget, federal funding covers 7% and local levies fill in the 16% gap of the rest of the district’s needs, Leatherwood noted in her presentation.
Leatherwood pointed out that there’s “a lot of uncertainty” surrounding federal dollars.
Leatherwood explained that the EP&O levy will be directly affected by enrollment. In 2027, to collect the maximum amount in the renewed levy, the school district will need an enrollment of 965 students by the end of 2025, she explained. Leatherwood was “conservative” with the amount of projected enrollment she used to calculate the EP&O levy amount, she said.
A presentation from the district compares Coupeville’s current total levy rate compared to the total rate of bonds and levies in eight other school district, including Oak Harbor and South Whidbey. Unlike most other districts, Coupeville isn’t paying off a bond.
Coupeville’s current combined rate of 80 cents per $1,000 is the lowest on the list and will remain the lowest even if the two replacement levies are passed. Oak Harbor’s total rate is $1.86 — which is for an EP&O levy — and South Whidbey’s total rate is $1.06 per $1,000.
Board Vice President Nancy Conard said that the district’s rate is “nothing” compared to what others are paying, and she still has doubts that the increase will be enough.
“I wish it was more,” Conard said. “It’s an increase and that’s what you got the first crack to make things right.”
Board Member Charles “Chic” Merwine echoed that the district needs to account for the additional costs the district has that state and federal funds don’t cover.
“We have been passing levies historically to be barely enough and then it got to be not enough,” he said.
The resolution will be discussed at the next board meeting. If passed, it will be available for vote on the ballot for the Feb. 10 election and would go into effect in 2027. Levies require a simple majority to pass.
Learn more about the EP&O and Capital Projects Technology levies at coupeville.k12.wa.us/levy.
