Ballots in the mail in seven school districts

Vancouver — Registered voters in Clark County will soon receive ballots in the mail for the Feb. 9 special election. Six school districts — Evergreen, Green Mountain, Hockinson, La Center, Ridgefield and Vancouver — are seeking multiyear maintenance and operations levies to replace expiring levies. The Camas School District is the lone district with a bond measure on the ballot. Only voters in those school districts will receive ballots.

Registered voters in those districts who do not receive a ballot by Jan. 29 should contact the Clark County Elections Office to request a replacement ballot by phone at 360-397-2345; in person at 1408 Franklin St.; by e-mail at elections@clark.wa.gov ;or by mail at Clark County Elections Department, P.O. Box 8815, Vancouver, WA 98666-8815.

Ballots must be postmarked by Feb. 9 in order to be valid, or dropped off at one of the county’s authorized drop locations before 8 p.m. on Election Day. One of those locations is a drop box in the middle of 14th Street between Franklin and Esther streets in downtown Vancouver. It is accessible 24 hours a day.

Election results will be available around 8:15 p.m. at www.clarkvotes.org. A sample ballot is available on the website.

Schools in Washington are funded through a combination of federal, state and local dollars. About 7 to 11 percent of a district’s budget is paid for by federal funds distributed to states. The majority of school district budgets — from 68 to 75 percent — is paid for by statewide sales tax and property tax revenues from the general fund. About 18 to 24 percent of a district’s budget comes from property taxes. Levy money fills the gap between the basic education funding provided by the state and the current operating budget of a district.

School districts use the proceeds from maintenance and operations levies to pay for a variety of programs not funded by the state, including extra teachers and staff, and extracurricular programs such as athletics and student field trips.