Ballots for the upcoming school board elections and the Bitterroot College mill levy are already in the mail! According to Ravalli County Clerk and Recorder Regina Plettenberg, ballots were mailed out last Friday, April 17 and voters have until May 5 to return them. This election is a mail-in ballot only election and no polling places will be open.
The Ravalli County Elections Office has been closed to walk-in traffic since March 30 due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic but has continued to work behind closed doors via mail, phone, fax and email. According to County Clerk and Recorder Regina Plettenberg, if you need to register to vote, update your voter registration, or request an absentee ballot, you can complete a voter registration form or absentee ballot request form and return the form via mail, fax, or email.
“But as the May 5th deadline gets closer,” said Plettenberg, “we will be open to help people at the office. We are just hoping that most people will be proactive and practice the proper social distancing as long as we can,” said Plettenberg. Anyone with questions can call the office at 375-6550 or email: elections@rc.mt.gov
The Bitterroot Community College is holding an election to propose the creation of a community college district and elect seven trustees at-large to the board. The District’s boundaries would include the school districts of Corvallis, Pinesdale, Darby, Hamilton, Lone Rock Elementary, Stevensville, Elementary and Victor. Voters residing in those districts are eligible to vote in the election.
The ballot contains a second issue in which voters are being asked to approve a levy to fund the district. If approved, the Community College District would be authorized to impose a mandatory levy to fund part of its operation. The levy would be permanent with no durational limit. The number of mills to be imposed will be 8.86 mills to raise approximately $650,000 per year.
The impact on a home valued at $100,000 would be approximately $12.00 per year. The impact on a home valued at $200,000 would be approximately $24 per year. The levy would be limited in its growth according to state law.
There are eleven candidates on the ballot vying for seven board seats on the Community College District Board. They include Gary Carlson, Linda Doughty, Robert Fifield, Don Gardner, Brittany Leatham-Olney, Candy Lubansky, Judith Mott, Ran Pigman, Marci Smith, Sue Smith and Janet Woodburn.
Election of some school board trustees and one school levy are also on the ballot.
The residents of the Lone Rock Elementary School District will not only get to fill two positions on the school board of trustees they will get the chance to pass a levy…or not.
The proposal on the ballot would replace the 1999 bond for the Middle School building construction which expires on June 30, 2020 with a “tax-neutral” levy of equal value. The new levy would be adopted on July 1, 2020 and there would be no increase in the annual taxes for Lone Rock School.
The levy authorizes the board of trustees to replace the expired bond with a General Fund operations levy in the same amount of 21.52 mills, which currently totals $103,855 per year for the purpose of general fund operational costs, including deferred facilities maintenance, safety and security updates, updating curriculum materials, educational programming and technology updates/repairs.
The passage of this levy will continue the existing annual tax of approximately $29.05 on a home with a market value of $100,000, and approximately $58.10 on a home with a market value of $200,000. The duration of the levy is permanent once approved by the voters, assuming the district levies that amount at least once in the next five years. A “yes” vote will keep Lone Rock School taxes the same. A “no” vote will reduce Lone Rock School taxes by the amount of the expiring 1999 bond.
Also on the ballot in Lone Rock are two open seats for three-year terms on the Board of Trustees. Candidates include William Gary Leese, Matthew Schaefer and Brandon Williams.
Two seats with three-year terms are also open on the Stevensville School Board of Trustees with three candidates on the ballot: Sean Lenahan, Ben Meyer and Wm Todd Wohlman.
Two seats with three-year terms are also open on the Florence-Carlton School Board of Trustees with four candidates on the ballot: Robert Cook, Lacy Janes, Bobbie Ketelhut and Ckye Thomas.
Two candidates are also on the ballot for a three-year term on the Florence Rural Fire District board: Robert DeWitt and Dan Martin.
Two seats are also open on the Corvallis school Board of Trustees. There are three candidates running for three open seats on the board: Becky Anderson, Shawn F. Boelman and Dan Wolsky. The terms are al for three years. One position to fill an unexpired term is contested by Tonia Bloom and Carol W. Peterson.
Eight candidates are vying for four seats on the Ravalli County Park District Number 2, the Bitterroot Aquatic Center. They are all four-year terms. Candidates include Stephen Bergeron, Ronald Frost, Chris Porter, Amy J. C. Reed, Karen Savory, Ryal Weber, Marilyn Wildey and Jeff Wolfe.