Tribe: pay school bond taxes

The La Conner Schools budget for 2020 calls for $1,499,062 in taxes for servicing the debt on the bond that built the new middle school. The Swinomish Tribe does not contribute toward this debt, even though the Swinomish people voted for it.

Given that roughly 16.2 percent of the school population is Native American, the Tribe should contribute $242,886 toward debt service. According to the County Assessor, there are 2,302 non-exempt taxpayers in the La Conner School District. Each of them must pay $105.51 extra to make up for what the Swinomish should pay.

The budget calls for a $555,000 donation from the Tribe. This is part of the tax shift that resulted from the Gray Wolf Lodge decision. That plus $242,886 equals $797,886 that the Superintendent should seek from the Tribe for next year.

The school district should deduct that amount from their $1,586,527 levy request, making the total levy request $788,641.

Sincerely,

Dan O’Donnell

La Conner