The purpose of this communication is to provide you with updated information about write-in candidates on the May ballot for Board positions AND about the District Budgets approved by the Budget Committees.
May 20th Election – Write-in Campaigns
This week, Clatsop County Elections is sending ballots to registered voters for the May 20th election.
There are 4 open positions for the 2 boards – 3 positions for water and 1 position for sanitary.
Listed below are the people who have notified us of their interest in serving on the Boards. Their names will need to be “write-ins” on the ballots for the specified positions. It is important that at least one person is elected through the write-in process for the Water District because there are only two board members continuing past June 30. A third member is required to conduct any business and if there are fewer than three, the Clatsop County Commission will fill the vacancy by appointment.
Water District Board: Position #3 – Richard Petrich
Sanitary District Board: Position #2 – Doug Caffall
Next Year’s Budget & Long Range Plan Projections – Public Hearing May 15th
Both Districts will hold a Public Hearing on their Budget during the Board meetings that are scheduled for Thursday May 15th, with Sanitary District at 5 PM and Water District at 6 PM. The meetings will be in-person at the Firehouse and via Zoom. Check the web site for Zoom Link and meeting materials. <<click here for web site>>
Here are the links to the Districts’ Budgets and Long Range Plans
Of note, the Budget Committees have approved the following:
1. Starting this next Fiscal Year (July 1, 2025), the Personnel Costs for the 2 full-time operations positions will be increased so that they are competitive and the Districts will be better able to recruit and maintain staff.
2. Starting in FY2027-28 (at the conclusion of the 2-year contract with the Interim District Administrator), $50,000 total will be added to the annual budgets for the two Districts to be spent on Temporary Help – either operations help, administrative help or both.
3. In FY2030-2031, logging is scheduled to prevent the Forest Fund from going to $0. This was the plan recommended in 2023 by the Finance Committee and Forest Management Committee if there was no funding from tax levy or rate increases. The scenario was presented to the public in January 2024.
4. Rate increases for the next 10 years, Combined Water and Sanitary rates + surcharge, are projected as:
A.C. Water District Board (Go to Home Page) 