This image from a Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District video shows the difference in density between treated and untreated forest.

As you likely have noticed, we are not endorsing candidates, nor ballot measures in the November election. That was a decision by the owners for all EO Media papers.

We have been highlighting some ballot measures in particular. One of them is for all Deschutes County voters. They will voice their opinion this election on a property tax measure for the Deschutes Soil and Water Conservation District.

If it passes, as the district says: “the maximum amount the District could levy is $0.06 per $1,000 of assessed property value, and this rate could not be raised.” So it would be a permanent tax of $6 per $100,000 of assessed value on a property per year. The average that Deschutes County property owners would pay is about $14.28 per year. Remember, of course, a property’s assessed value is different from its real market value.

The soil and water district may have the distinction of being the least well known of the Deschutes county-wide special districts. It’s similar to the Deschutes library or the Bend park district. The soil and water district is all about improving natural resources. It works on water and soil quality, wildlife habitat, invasive weeds, forest health and reducing wildfire risk.

It is not an advocacy group. It doesn’t regulate or enforce the law. It doesn’t collect any taxes, today. Its projects are voluntary.

It recently collaborated with the city of Bend on a project to remove turf grass and install native vegetation. It treated about 4,500 square feet and that means many, many gallons of water saved over time. It also recently did seven projects to improve forest health and reduce fuels, working on treating 290 acres of land around Sisters and Bend. Those are just a couple projects in a long list.

The district has a board of elected directors that oversees it. They have a relatively small budget to work with compared to many government bodies. Revenues were $582,474 for the fiscal year ending in 2023. Expenditures were $666,383, for a total decline in the district’s position to $331,532. The district’s money comes primarily from grants, even some recently from Visit Central Oregon.

The district went through a challenging episode in the mid-2000s with trouble repaying a loan to the state to fund a project with weed-eating goats. That is the past.

Another brief tangent: The district’s July meeting minutes we were provided with did not include who voted to put the measure on the ballot and who was against it. That is required under Oregon’s public records law. We don’t believe that error was anything more than an unintentional oversight. It’s no Soilgate. Erin Kilcullen, the district’s manager, told us the district corrected it and would fix the practice going forward.

What the district is trying to do with the ballot measure is create stable funding to do more work. The permanent levy would raise an estimated $2.1 million a year. That’s more for rural areas to do water conservation. It’s more work on forest health and wildfire risk. It’s more work in urban communities doing pollinator habitat, water conservation and so on.

Though we don’t see any arguments against it in the voter’s pamphlet, you can imagine some people may see the tax increase and immediately raise their pen to fill in the bubble for “no.” Opponents may also feel that the district does enough already, doesn’t need a permanent levy, or they may dislike the land ownership requirements for most members of the district’s board. The key reason to vote for the levy is the need to do more to protect the county’s natural resources. Approving the levy is a way to help make that happen.

You can find much more information about the district and the levy at deschutesswcd.org.

If you are reading the print edition, there is a guest column from one of the district’s directors to the right. That is also available online.