Politics & Government

April 23 Special Election: Have You Turned in Your Ballot Yet?

Residents in the King County Fire Protection District No. 40 service area, covering are considering the re-authorization of a six-year "benefit" charge to fund a most of the operations of the district.

There's just one more day until ballots for the April 23 special election are due. In our area, residents in the King County Fire Protection District No. 40 service area, which operates in a partnership with the Renton Fire Department, is asking voters to continue supporting firefighters through a benefit charge, paid for through property taxes. Click here for more details.

Benefit charges, created by the state legilature in 1987, allows fire districts to ask voters to collect a benefit charge from residential and business property owners based on anticipated need, rather than exclusively on property value. In the past, the fire district was allowed a statutory maximum of $1.50 per $1,000 in assessed value in property taxes, but total funding for the district fluctuated year-to-year with changes in property values.

Sixty percent majority approval is required to pass the measure, which will allow the district to maintain current levels of service for the Cascade/Fairwood area. There is no organized opposition to the benefit charge.

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Ballots were mailed on April 5.

If you haven't done so already, there are a few ways to return your completed King County Election ballot:

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  • By mail: Ballots require first class postage and have to be postmarked by April 23
  • Drop it off: Ballots can be dropped off anytime until 8 p.m. on April 23
    • At a drop box (Click for more locations):
      • Renton: King County Elections (919 SW Grady Way)
      • Maple Valley: Tahoma School District Offices (25720 Maple Valley-Black Diamond Rd SE)
    • At a voting center
      • Renton: King County Elections (919 SW Grady Way)


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