After failed school levy, Pasco makes critical decision. What happens next?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Board approved April 28 revote on a four‑year, $153M levy to fund schools.
- Measure would tax about $2.08 per $1,000; $832/yr on $400K home.
- Failure risks $50M in cuts; levy plus state match is about 15% of budget.
Pasco voters will have another shot at passing a school levy during the April 28 special election.
They’ll be asked to pass a four-year, $153 million measure to pay for athletics, educational opportunities, technology, curriculum, extracurricular activities, music and the arts, counselors, nurses, transportation and student safety.
It’s the same amount listed on the Feb. 10 special election ballot. But the expected rate could be about 9 cents cheaper at $2.08 taxed on every $1,000 of assessed value.
On a home valued at $400,000, that’s about $832 a year.
The school board approved the resolution at its Tuesday night business meeting. Board members on both side of the issue acknowledged it was an emotional decision, no matter how it shook out.
The resolution passed 3-1. School Board President Scott Lehrman sided with board members Amanda Brown and John Kennedy in supporting the move, while board member Heather Kubalek voted against it.
Vice President Steve Norberg was absent from Tuesday’s meeting.
The board also considered a lower $147 million levy, but that would have come with $8 million in cuts across those four years — the equivalent of cutting about 21 full-time positions.
It would have taxed about $1.99 on every $1,000 of value, and would have cost about $796 on a $400,000 house – or about $144 less over four years.
The four high school representatives who serve as non-voting members on the school board said they agreed with the larger measure.
Lehrman said the difference between the two measures was just 1% of the district’s total budget. He favored a smaller request as a way to draw in skeptical voters, but said in the end they needed something on the table for voters to decide on.
“I don’t know if there’s any spot where it’s a for sure thing. We’ve got a community that’s basically divided, 50-50. It’s a tossup,” Lehrman said.
But Kennedy argued that lower request would have been a tougher sell to parents and levy supporters.
The district is already making other budget cuts, and he said further reductions would be a disservice to staff and teachers who dedicate their lives to serving students.
“This district is on strong fiscal footing already, and there is no need to implement cuts to our levy supported programs,” Kennedy said, adding that the district doesn’t need a “radical wake-up call.”
Levies support $50M a year in Pasco schools
The decision on asking voters for a new levy came just days after the district’s operations levy on the Feb. 10 failed.
It needed 60 more “yes” votes to get the simple majority it needed to pass.
Pasco School District has one more shot at renewing its levy funding before it expires at the end of this year, or it will face $50 million in cuts to programs funded in-part or solely by the revenue.
Levy revenues and state matching money make up about 15% of the district’s $340 million operating budget.
Three school board members — Lehrman, Norberg and Kubalek — initially considering asking voters for less money.
Kubalek said they should honor those in the community who want to see the school district tighten its belt.
She said she heard from a single parents who couldn’t afford it, staff members who want to see the district be more efficient with its resources, and that there were others who are upset about the quality of education.
“There is a large part of our community that has concerns. And to just ignore them and say, ‘No, we’re doing good. We need the money that we need, so just give it to us,’ I don’t think that’s being good leaders of our community,” she said.
While she voted against the resolution, Kubalek said she would be voting for and vocally supporting the April measure.
Voting records show all five current Pasco School Board members voted in the Feb. 10 election.
Cost to put back on the ballot
The revote will be costly for the school district.
Pasco School District could pay Franklin County about $325,000 since it would likely be the only measure on the ballot, with no other agency helping split the cost.
By comparison, Pasco paid the county about $78,000 to be on the Feb. 10 ballot because it shared the cost with five other measures.
With the last election results certified last week, Pasco faced a deadline this week to ask voters to reconsider before making budgeting decisions for the 2026-27 school year.
Staffing needs to be in place by May 15. If it delayed a vote until August or November elections, it would have to implement temporary layoffs, then recall them if the levy passed.
School boards are required by state law to pass school district budgets in time for the next fiscal year.
Here’s how Pasco School District used its levy during the 2024-25 school year. Spending would be about the same.
- Staff costs: $30.5 million
- Athletics: $3.5 million
- Curriculum materials and supplies: $1.8 million
- Transportation: $1.7 million
- Extracurricular activities: $1.4 million
- Social emotional learning: $850,000
- Professional development: $561,000
- Facilities and operations: $261,000
- Visual and performing arts: $246,000
- Special education supplement: $54,000
This story was originally published February 25, 2026 at 9:28 AM.
