Wahluke EP&O levy narrowly passing

MATTAWA — Wahluke School District voters are narrowly approving a four-year educational programs and operations levy proposal in unofficial results from the special election Tuesday.

The levy proposal received 254 yes votes, 51.52%, and 239 no votes, 48.48%, in results released Tuesday night by the Grant County Auditor’s Office. About 77 votes were left to count as of Tuesday, according to the auditor’s website. Because it’s a school EP&O levy, it requires a simple majority, 50% plus one vote, to pass.

Vote totals will be updated Friday, and final election results will be posted May 6.

If the trend continues and the levy is approved, it will generate an estimated $2.23 million in 2023, $2.35 million in 2024, $2.47 million in 2025 and $2.6 million in 2026.

A two-year levy proposal was narrowly rejected in February, and Wahluke superintendent Andy Harlow expressed appreciation over the result of Tuesday’s vote.

“The real winners in this whole process are our kids,” Harlow said. “We’ll be able to continue to provide those programs the state doesn’t fully fund, or fund at all. So that’s exciting.”

Harlow was hired as superintendent in 2021, and was previously Wahluke Junior High principal. He said he learned a lot through the levy process, starting with the need for face-to-face communication, both on campus and with district patrons.

“I was able to reach out to groups that I hadn’t reached out to before,” he said. “We got to share our message about what we’re doing at school and meet with people that had questions about the district. Not always related to the levy, but just good questions. I thought it was really, really helpful to meet with people.”

Harlow said he plans to work to improve communication with district patrons - which in his opinion was lacking in the past.

“It was a little disappointing to find out how we’ve taken our voters for granted for so many years, almost expecting a yes vote,” he said. “It was nice to hear those people. I think they felt that we can hear their concerns.”

Harlow said he also talked with district patrons who planned to vote no regardless.

“They just don’t like the format of levies and the way the state has set it up,” he said. “So, fair enough.”

The levy is passing by a slim margin, and Harlow said that’s a sign district officials need to connect more with district patrons.

“There’s still a lot of work to be done to bridge the gap between the school district and our community,” he said.

Cheryl Schweizer may be reached at cschweizer@columbiabasinherald.com.

Wahluke EP&O initial counts Yes: 254 votes, 51.52%

No: 239 votes, 48.48%

Needs 50% plus one vote to pass

SOURCE: GRANT CO. AUDITOR'S OFFICE