2025 Levy FAQs

Ballots must be received or postmarked by November 4, 2025, to count.  Ballots will be sent directly to registered voters by the Pierce County Elections Office.

You can register to vote online, by mail or in-person at the Pierce County Elections Office in Tacoma.   For more information, please visit the Pierce County Elections website at https://www.piercecountywa.gov/6572/Register-to-Vote.

More information about the Capital Projects levy can be found here.

Additional information about the Educational Programs & Operations levy can be found here.

The Capital Projects Levy approved by voters in 2023 was a short-term levy that will expire in 2025. The 2023 levy provided funding for significant and emergent capital projects needs of the district. 

The 2025 Capital Projects replacement levy proposal would provide approximately $7 million per year for 4 years to address district-wide school facilities improvements, including security and safety enhancements, technology system upgrades, building maintenance projects, updates to infrastructure, and athletic facilities renovations.

This Capital Projects replacement levy is not a new tax and would provide 100% of the funding for the district's Capital Projects Fund.

Additionally on November 4, 2025, voters will be asked to renew Steilacoom Historical School District's Education Programs & Operations (EP&O) Levy. The proposed 2025 EP&O replacement levy will replace the EP&O Levy approved by voters in 2021 which is set to expire in 2026. Generally, a district would not submit a replacement levy in the year before the current levy expires. However, the district seeks to secure tax rates and reduce voter fatigue by running the EP & O levy with the capital levy in November 2025.

If approved, the 4-year replacement EP&O levy is estimated to collect a total of $43 million from 2027-2030 to provide support for educational programs and daily operations, including teachers, school counselors, instructional support, school nurses, athletics and extracurricular activities, and transportation.

This 4-year EP&O replacement levy is not a new tax and would provide 18% of SHSD's total operating budget.

The Capital Projects Levy approved by voters in 2023 was a short-term levy that will expire in 2025. The 2023 levy provided funding for significant and emergent capital projects needs of the district including:

• New heating and ventilation system at Cherrydale Primary School
• New heating and ventilation system at Chloe Clark Elementary School
• New roof and building maintenance at Steilacoom High School
• Security and lighting upgrades throughout the district
• New field turf at Steilacoom High School
• Technology system improvements throughout the district
• Purchase of future elementary school site

The total local school tax rate is estimated to  increase just slightly, from a current total of $2.80 per $1,000 assessed value to approximately $2.95 per $1,000 assessed value. This stable tax rate is due to careful timing as our previously approved Capital Projects and Educational Programs & Operations levies are expiring.

Steilacoom Historical School District relies on local, voter-approved funding measures to fill the gap between the funding the district receives from the state and what it actually costs to provide the best education for every student. Both levy proposals are not new taxes, and are replacing currently levies which will expire in 2025 and 2026.

The Capital Projects levy will fund site improvement projects as well as safety & security improvements, technology improvements and replacements, and necessary building maintenance and improvement projects. More details about the replacement Capital Projects levy are available here.

The Educational Programs & Operations levy provides 18% of total district funding and will continue to fund vital programs, staffing, and transportation for the district. Classroom teachers, as well as support staff (including nurses, school counselors, and instructional support staff), are funded by the EP&O levy. In fact, the EP&O levy funds 1 in 5 district employees. The EP&O levy also provides funding necessary for the district's extra-curricular activities including music, art, drama, and athletics.  After-school activity transportation is also funded by the EP&O levy. More details about the replacement Educational Programs & Operations levy are available here.

Most grants require some local matching funds and approval of this levy would provide the district with the ability to apply for, and hopefully be awarded, grants to support the projects.  We will request state, federal, and local/private grants whenever the benefits of the grants outweigh the additional requirements and local costs of applying for them.

A levy rate is the amount of property tax per $1,000 of assessed property value to fund a voter approved levy amount. A levy rate of $1.00 means that for every $1,000 of property value, the owner of the property will have to pay $1.00 in taxes.

Example: If a homeowner has a home valued at $200,000 and the levy rate is $1.00 for every $1,000 of assessed property value, the homeowner will pay $200 annually in property taxes.

Senior citizens and disabled persons may qualify for a tax exemption. More information about tax relief programs is available on the Pierce County website. If you need assistance, you can reach the Senior Citizen and People with Disabilities Exemption Department hotline at (253) 798-2169 or by email at pcatrexm@piercecountywa.gov.

Steilacoom Historical School District's current Educational Programs & Operations (EP&O) levy expires in 2026. The expiring levy rate was estimated at $1.73 per $1,000 of assessed property value. Similarly, the replacement EP&O levy has an estimated rate of $1.74 per $1,000 of assessed value. If approved by voters, the replacement EP&O levy would take effect after the existing levy expires. There is no overlap between the two, and taxpayers do not pay for two EP&O levies at once.

The district's current Capital Projects (CP) levy expires in 2025. The expiring levy rate was estimated at $1.07 per $1,000 of assessed property value, and the replacement CP levy has an estimated rate of $1.21 per $1,000 of assessed value. If approved by voters, the replacement CP levy would take effect after the existing levy expires. There is no overlap between the two, and taxpayers do not pay for two CP levies at once.

If approved the 4-year replacement EP&O levy is estimated to collect a total of $43 million from 2027-2030.

The 4-year Capital Projects levy would collect a total of $29 million from 2026 - 2029.

If the EP&O levy is not approved, the Steilacoom Historical School District would prepare to run it a second time in 2026 while simultaneously preparing for reductions in staff and student programs. Without consistent EP&O levy funds, the district would face significant budget challenges, as local levies fill the funding gap left by a shortfall in state and federal education funding. The EP&O levy funding helps ensure that SHSD can maintain quality programs, services, and staffing levels that support student success.

If the CP levy is not approved, SHSD would prepare to run it a second time in 2026 while simultaneously preparing to cut current budgets elsewhere in the district to cover essential maintenance projects. Any improvement projects would not be completed.

Yes. Steilacoom Historical School District, like all public school districts, is required to provide services that the state does not fund or only partially funds. For example, Federal and state laws mandate that school districts provide comprehensive special education services to eligible students. However, the funding provided covers only a portion of the actual costs.

Another example is the implementation of health and safety regulations. Mandates related to health protocols, safety drills, and facility upgrades to meet regulatory standards often come without sufficient funding, compelling districts to reallocate limited resources.

The district and the School Board take financial stewardship seriously. The district’s finances are posted publicly on our website, and the Board hears and reviews monthly financial reports during public board meetings. These reports are posted on the district’s website as part of the board packet, and video recordings are also available. 

Financial reports are also submitted to the State of Washington and can be found on OSPI’s Apportionment, Enrollment, and Fiscal Reports website. The Steilacoom Historical School District is also audited annually by the Washington State Auditor’s Office to ensure the district is safeguarding public resources.

You can check our website for additional information or you can call us at 253-983-2200 and ask to talk to someone about the 2025 levy proposals. We have several staff available who can answer your questions about the projects and the property tax implications.