“The Oak Harbor School District shells out $8,000 to $12,000 in election costs each time it asks residents to vote on school levies, according to Suzanne Sinclair, Island County auditor.The costs of the special elections include items such as printed ballots and county employee man-hours required to run the election.Each time the measures fail to pass and are put back on the ballot during another special election, the election costs must be paid all over again.If the learning improvements, school lunches and sports facilities measures fail in the March 13 special election, it will be up to the School Board whether they put it back on the ballot, according to Lynn Goebel of Citizens for Better Schools, a grassroots organization that pushes for improvements to local school facilities and services. The needs in this district are real, stated Goebel, adding that the group would support inclusion of the levies in the May 15 special election if they are not passed March 13.The decision of whether to try for passage of the levies again would be evaluated by the Oak Harbor School Board after analyzing the results of the March 13 special election, according to Susan Waller, vice president of the Oak Harbor School Board. If the board thinks that the measures came close to passage, it may opt to try again.This is what we are dealt by the state, commented Waller. All school districts have to run special elections, and we have to pay for it. The school district has funds budgeted for election costs, which are separate from the funds earmarked for student education and services. “