We have elevated prices from high inflation and taxpayers/citizens are stretched as it is. This is a financial belt-tightening time.

Note that renters pay property taxes in their rents. On average about 1 to 1.5 months of rent per year are needed to cover the annual property taxes for each rental unit.

Districts have recently secured hefty compensation increases, exceeding inflation and in fact fueling inflation, for themselves. Property taxpayers have limits. As of 2024-2025, median total per pupil expenditures (TPPE) per year, including capital outlays and interest on debt, was approximately $23,000.  That is more than tuition at most private K-12 schools in WA and more than tuition at the University of Washington. 

The median total compensation for WA's public school district teachers, as of the 2024-2025 school year, was around $140,000 for 10 months of work. The total compensation for 26 of WA's public school district superintendents was over $400,000. That is more than the governor's compensation. School district school boards are failing to rein in out-of-control spending. Then they seem to wonder why they have budget deficits that they then blame on the state legislature and local taxpayers.

Perhaps it is time for school vouchers to give families a choice and taxpayers a break.

There should be no "Enrichment" levies  (that most school districts incorrectly call EP&O levies) in WA, period. We had the McCleary Decision and its associated higher State School property taxes to fully fund education. WA’s dozen or so public charter schools are prohibited from running levies (or bonds). WA’s 295 traditional public school districts need to learn from the charter schools, play by the same rules, and stay within their means.  

All school district staff compensations should be set at the State level - not at each individual school district acting in a silo. Leaving these loopholes (local school levies and local school bonds) just allows school districts to engage in a bidding war with local taxpayers' money and is leading us to McCleary 2.0

Also, there should be no tax measures at all on February elections. WA citizens won't even have their 2026 property tax bills until a few days after the election. 

Link to the interactive version

Link to an analysis of all school district tax measures for this election

Link to the interactive version

Link to the interactive version