A renewal of the educational programs and operations levy for the Oak Harbor School District is passing in the first count of ballots in the special election today.

Under the current tally, “yes” votes are ahead by about 61.9% of the vote. So far, 7,073 ballots have been counted, which represents 28% of registered voters in the district. An estimated 500 remain to be counted.

The proposition authorizes the district to levy property taxes for four years upon all taxable property within the district at the estimated rate of $2.28 — the same that was estimated in 2021, when 55% of voters approved the current, expiring levy.

However, voters approve a set amount to levy — not a rate — starting with $16.99 million collected in 2026, $17.68 million in 2027, $18.387 million in 2028 and $19.122 million in 2029, according to information provided in the district’s levy renewal webpage.

The levy supports programs and operations that the state does not fund as they are not part of what is considered “basic education.” That includes special education, paraeducators, academic and mental health counselors, electives and advanced placement courses, athletics, arts, school nurses, security enhancements, classroom technology and smaller class sizes.

According to a News-Times story published in 2007, the school district proposed 20 levies between 1968 and 2005, and only four passed — a math levy in 1992, a pair of levies in 2001 and a renewal levy in 2005. It was then approved in 2013, 2017 and 2021.