Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Renton School District details two replacement levies on Nov. 4 ballot
Summary
Renton School District Community Relations outlined Measure One (Education Programs and Operations) and Measure Two (Technology/Capital Projects), saying both replace expiring levies, fund staff and technology, and — the district projects — would not raise combined tax rates despite funding needs.
Randy Matheson, community relations for the Renton School District, laid out details of two replacement levies that will appear on the Nov. 4, 2025, ballot and said both measures replace existing voter-approved levies that expire in 2026.
Matheson said Measure One, the Education Programs and Operations Replacement Levy, funds classroom supports and day‑to‑day operations that the state does not cover. "Local levies help our school district continue current education programs and maintain critical day-to-day school operations not funded by the state," he said, adding the levy supports services such as academic supports, arts, athletics, transportation, and staff including nurses and counselors.
The district presented specific staffing examples it says are paid for with levy dollars: 11 additional safety and security staff beyond the two positions the state funds, 17 mental health specialists compared with "less than three" state-funded psychologists districtwide, and 22 additional custodial and maintenance staff serving the district's 25 schools. Matheson characterized the local levies as necessary to "bridge the gap" between state funding and classroom needs and said that gap is "about a $58 million gap each year." These figures were stated by the presenter and are not vote outcomes or formal budget approvals.
Measure Two, the Technology/Capital Projects Replacement Levy, would continue funding building renovations, energy-efficiency and safety upgrades, athletic facility work and classroom technology. Matheson described the technology portion as intended to maintain devices such as laptops and tablets, provide adaptive technology for students with disabilities, supply home Wi‑Fi hotspots and upgrade network hardware and cybersecurity.
On taxes, Matheson said the levies request fixed dollar amounts from voters that "don't increase from what is approved by voters on November 4th," and that assessed‑value increases do not automatically raise a homeowner's levy payment. Using a conservative growth model, the district projected that its combined local tax rate would decline to $3.39 per $1,000 of assessed value during the levies' term; he noted the combined local rate has fallen about 36% since 2016, from $5.35 per $1,000 to $3.41 today. As an example, Matheson calculated that a $750,000 home would have paid $4,012 under the 2016 rate but pays $2,557 at today's rate, a difference he described as a $1,455 savings.
The presentation emphasized that these levies are replacement measures, not new taxes, and that levies fund local positions and services the district says are not fully funded by state dollars. Matheson encouraged registered voters in the Renton School District to watch for ballots in mid‑October and to return them by the Nov. 4 deadline. For more information he directed viewers to the district website, rentonschools.us, and provided an email address: community.relations@rentonschools.us.
The presentation did not include a board vote or formal action; it was an information session explaining ballot measures and projected fiscal effects.
