Transparent only for those with x-ray glasses. $300,000,000.00 over 20 years could provide charter school for 2,000 students per year. How far would that money go to help families home school students? Our school buildings are not new and need repair, and also in need of repair is the educational curriculum. We in Sequim graduate students with below average scores across the main objectives of Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic. Is it possible that money spent to hire a law firm, to write a bond proposal that seems to promote safety and esthetics while hiding the true cost, could be better spent improving educational outcomes for students? I have heard the plea “WE NEED MORE MONEY FOR SCHOOLS” for over 60 years and have seen 60 years of decline in skills and competency of average graduates, along with increases in administrative costs. Let’s follow the money when making a decision on these propositions. Keep an eye one the pimps promising us.
'This little piggy had roast beef...this little piggy had none...this little piggy went We-We-We...all the way home!'
Some of the piggies are doing quite a bit better than others...BY STEALING FROM THE REST OF THE PIGGIES!
We need a 'big bad wolf' to blow down the houses of corruption housing the 'selected' criminals. It's a Spiritual battle being played out in the material world.
Revealing, as painful as it may be...has to come first...God loves a good drama!🎭😁
Very eloquently put, Robert! Interesting how obvious the subtleties become when a spotlight is aimed at a little bit of word play. “For the devil can recite scripture for his purpose”. Whether the language was adopted after the deadline to submit any documents opposing it or not, taxpayers expected to shoulder this burden should be given fair, legal opportunity to say so& their voices be impartially heard. I’m not a property owner myself, but I have family & friends here that are & I cannot in good conscience vote in favor of a levy that is so clearly & deliberately tricking voters into approving their own doom. God bless all who are being victimized by this sideways language. The more I read about all the corruption here, the more anxious I feel. My interest in leaving not only this county, but Washington State in general is beginning to snowball into desperation. What is happening to my beloved hometown quite literally makes me physically ill
I/We understand Kirsten...unfortunately there are infiltrators in all gov'ts...even conservative Idaho had their water czar try to cut off water to 500,000 acres of farmland...they supposedly need the land and water for lithium mining...it also conveniently reduces food availability and destroys farmers...a win-win for deep state.
If you can find a safe place to ride out the storm, blessings for you...most of us will have to 'shelter in place' as things unfold.
This state is getting the attention of the new federal admin. (which is probably a two-edged sword) but seems to be dismantling the corruption (hope the power doesn't corrupt the new folks) and Washington State is def. on their radar!
The insanity is pretty much in the open now, so that's a start...
Don't allow it to make you sick...then they win...I struggle with this too...any sensitive intelligent being is/will be feeling deeply disturbed by what's going on...we do what we can...and release it... day by day, minute by minute...that's the way to not get ill!
"Micro-dosing the hard truth by making little jokes about it" (Akorn on YouTube)😁
I'll be forever grateful to Sequim Rotary for sending me on an exchange to South America during my senior year of high school.
In Chile, I attended public school (considered the lowest end of the educational system). Classrooms were bare and unadorned with paper mâché planets and posters about reading. The two-story building was made of cinderblock, and the facilities were old but clean and well-maintained. Those Chilean students ran circles around me in math and science and (almost) knew more about English than I did. 27 years ago, their education was far superior to my B-average career at Sequim High. As for sports, there was a small gymnasium there, but athletics seemed to be everywhere in the community -- there were leagues and teams and opportunities to pick up a soccer ball and play any day of the week.
I recently toured the SHS campus, and yes, it is decrepit. I don't doubt there is asbestos in the countertops, walls, and floor tiles. I saw the uneven sidewalks and improper drainage. I also saw tremendous neglect and a lack of proactive maintenance. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
What I didn't hear mentioned much during the SSD presentation was a word that, in my opinion, is the most important reason for our schools: "Education."
In 1997 and 1998, the hardworking teachers and ambitious Chilean students of Liceo Oscar Castro Zuniga public school in Rancagua, Chile, taught me an important lesson: Education does not come from buildings.
McDonald Grade school on Bainbridge Island was not .1949? we ran outside. Duh.Walked to school.Uphill both ways. Picked up beer,pop bottles on the way home ..for deposit at local store.To much information.Old age.
I see you are being labeled as crazy. Typical ammo of Sequim anytime someone questions anything. Now when I see someone from Sequim being labeled crazy, I know they are telling the truth. Keep going.
Bonds requests, etc. need to be very CLEAR about the cost to taxpayers. My property tax is almost 500 a month. Until the school district can show they are good stewards of our money AND the state, I will not vote for higher taxes on anything. While the upper echelon of the school district get more and more, everyone else gets less and less.
Time to look at charter schools. Our education system as a whole needs a "remodel". Not just the buildings. As a school district employee, I am disappointed in the downturn of student behavior, the rarely given punishments, and lack of respect from the parents also. Asking me for more money while the system looks to punish everyone except the students and their parents for abusive behavior, is a shot in the dark. The amount of students I see on a daily basis that cannot read, nor write in the 4th and 5th grade is astounding. It is sad.
Final note, by adding athletics to bonds, this further alienates the majority of the school population. A very small percentage of student are actually participating in sports, cheer, etc. How about education and student management ? Holding the student and the parent responsible instead of the teacher or driver. We cannot continue to pour money down a losing issue. There are plenty of great parents and kids out there. They could use a couple grand for charter school. Give THEM the chance.
I, too, worked for a school district, and I know exactly how you feel about the students' and parents' behaviors - very, very disrespectful to teachers and staff with NO repercussions. I also firmly believe in school choice, which made me unpopular with some of my co-workers. Kids need an education, not a bloated, over-funded administration owned by the unions.
YES!!! Well said! It’s fantastic to get a perspective from an actual school district employee on this issue. I too have seen & felt the results of few to no consequences for the students & parents who abuse the system, as well as the degradation of education in our school system. My father, my siblings & myself as well as my own children- all attended Sequim Schools. That’s looking back over a time period beginning in the mid 1960’s to our current year of 2025 & the decline is clearly painted in red for anyone who’s actually watching. That’s 60+ years of decline in education!! & here I thought it was supposed to improved w/ time 🤷♀️ considering the tax increase doesn’t seem to include education at all, seems unnecessary really. Thank you so much for speaking up, I feel your perspective is important & in my opinion greatly it’s appreciated 👍🏼
So, a new law firm was hired by the school board. What is the name of the firm, and what necessitated the change? Transparency, Ms. Nikels? This is the SOP that CA used to get bonds, levies, fees, and taxes passed, including "misprinting" the dollar amount on the ballot. (Look for that tactic to happen here soon.) This is why I always vote NO on any measure. There is always a hidden agenda with every measure/initiative/proposition. Thank you, Jeff. This is one article the public can refer to when voting on future elections!
Front and center on their page under "Our Firm" is their "Opportunity and Progress Council" (fancy name for DEI). It states "DEI Foster Garvey’s Opportunity & Progress Council is dedicated to creating a workplace where inclusion is intentional and everyone has the chance to succeed." It also says:
"To promote an inclusive workplace, we provide annual training to all of our professionals."
They have 150 attorneys in seven cities plus who knows how many support staff. I wonder how much of what our school district paid for their legal services has gone to this training and to the employees needed to keep their DEI department up and running?
I was told-- but have not confirmed it-- that California floats school bonds every election. One would think that any new bonds would ADD to the unspent money of the old bonds, but I was told that it REPLACES the old bonds, freeing the unspent money from the previous bond for the politicians' favorite projects and pockets. We need the DOGE team to investigate it.
Under the law, they have to word them very carefully because it’s related to the wording of the indenture (legal description of what the bonds are for) on the bonds they sell.
Over half of the state general fund already goes to education. The state is constitutionally required to fund education. The county is not. “It is the paramount duty of the state to make ample
provision for the education of all children..."
Verdict: if the county is paying for education....any of it... that means the State of Washington is not doing its part. The county should be suing the state instead of going after the county taxpayers.
Question: Has the cost of providing education to illegal immigrants prevented the state from complying with its constitutional duty.
Washington had over 300 thousand illegal immigrants. Of those we cannot tell how man are children because their status is protected under state law.
In short, the Clallam County tax payers are now paying the price for Pugetropolis Snohomish- Thurston, Van-Portland, and Eastern Washington sanctuary cities, that harbor illegal's and suck up education dollars into basic education and do not leave enough in the capital project funds.
King County has 18,000 trackable immigrants. They don't track all immigrants. Clallam and Jefferson are lumped together. There are 11,933 immigrants in those two counties. 83 percent are Spanish.
I am seeing a lot of immigrants in our public schools. I see my state suing to pay for the education of over 100,000 illegal immigrants who really are not entitled to paid education.
Yes, they will be taxing you to pay for schooling illegal immigrants, our state has been so generous to educate. They pay no taxes so you are basically paying their taxes for them.. Now you have to pay to fix the buildings they can't afford to keep up, because the basic education for illegals sucked the capital projects fund dry.
They cite the state constitution. but our state constitution defers to the U.S. Constitution on immigration which the courts have routinely upheld despite many tries by states to bypass federal hierarchy. The feds set up a system of naturalization to obtain citizenship. In short, our state has usurped that constitutional pathway, and passed laws that conflict with federal law which is
supreme. Our state citizens will have to sue in federal court to block funding for illegal's. Vote no on any local bond or levy, until somebody else pays for the education of people who are not citizens.
This sums up the situation PERFECTLY, Jeff. It's just plain manipulation of the vulnerable - at our expense - to pad official's pockets. Expose them all.
There is some irony in having worked hard enough to own your own home complete with property only to be targeted as an exclusive public funding source. There are recent and ongoing large scale residential developments. The occupants of those new homes will have no/none/"0" past investment in the neighborhood; educational system in particular. These developments should be pro-rata taxed for the infrastructure they inherit. Regarding these school levies, voting no is a defacto approval. With all educational system employees and school age parents being an automatic yes, the required yes percentage is guaranteed. A no vote only serves to meet the mandatory participation percentage of the voting public. The only current possible path to defeat a school levy is to not vote.
Garry, are you saying that if these bond/levy measures were not presented as the ‘special elections’ that they have been, (which costs an additional $168,000.00 as I understand it), and instead were presented during a typical scheduled election, that theses levies/bonds might have a tougher time passing?
For the life of me, I have not been able to figure out WHY these are always ‘special elections’ and never presented during a regular election. Why start out spending over $100,000.00 that you could have saved? If this is the reason, you have blown my mind!
Special elections are intentionally held because these typically have lower voter turnout. This in turn makes it easier for ballot supporters to get the "yes" vote out and overcome the "No" voters.
Special elections need to be made unlawful. All elections, other than recall and primary elections, should be held every other November. Enough with this nonsense that tilts the electorate in favor of government schools.
Your point of spending so much money to get money is well taken. As to the passage of these special elections, the only path to defeating them is to not vote. The yes % is always high due to all who benefit from the $ voting yes. It is the mandatory participation % required of all the voter rolls that is vulnerable.
Yet again another stunning article and investigation into the NON-TRANSPARENT functions going on in Clallam County. Thanks again Jeff. Unfortunately with our kids being 40th out of 40 in the world (Last Place) and with the highest cost per pupil (First Place), it seems like dropping another whopping 140ish million is not the problem. As another respondent said "Follow the Money" and it always seems to come back to the people approving these things. We have already voted this down. Excellent work Jeff. Enjoy and stay safe.
Jeff, also wanted to let you know, if you do not know already, the Jamestown Tribe has converted their “Training Center” on the corner of Hwy 101 and W Sequim Bay Rd to the new and improved “Jamestown Water Utility”. I find this quite interesting as the developer of Seaview, on the Coast, is planning to develop 600 units near John Wayne Marina.
Some of the questions I heard at the meetings, which goes to your article of water supply, is how will this development get water as well as Water Treatment. It seems more than a coincidence this happened and looking at this far away, maybe the tribe will take on this portion of work of course for a fee…. FYI. Thx
I moved to Sequim in 2022 and because of the new sale received jump in property taxes. Ok fine. The following year I received another jump in property taxes bringing my re-assessement up to 62% in two years. I challenged the 2nd assessment and found that the Assessor changed the "birthdate" of my house from 1973 to "effectively" 2013 because of remodeling.
Another individual told me that he had put a porch on his house and was sent drone shots by the Assessor and was re-assessed. My point is, I thought property tax assessment would be less aggressive in Sequim than in Seattle where I was re-assessed every year. I think it is a statewide policy to go after property taxes. I calculated the proposed assessment for the levy. At $1.85 per $1,000 of assessed value, my property would be 600 x $1.85 = $1,110. Not insubstantial considering the interest on the levy was not included, and that I think school choice should be offered...the money to follow the student.
Thank you Jeff Tozzer for your great summary of the recent horrific history of our government in action. Good God~! This should have every decent Individual in our community rightfully enraged~! The obvious misdeeds of the local government and the underhanded behavior of the local tribal government and other entities that always have their hands in the public funds speak for themselves and absolutely clearly prove foul intent. I understand that "private corporations" may have a right to some degree of privacy, however it is criminally Insane to claim that "right to privacy" if they are taking so much as a single penny of taxpayer funds OR dodging accountability through tax incentives, tax loopholes, or government grants derived from taxpayer funds~! After hearing numerous accounts of the atrocious way that the local tribal government is treating its own tribal members when they don't "stay on the reservation" and keep their mouths shut about the highly questionable tribal government actions, I am becoming very concerned about the tribal members themselves entrapped by a power mad tribal government~! ALL members of this community need to refuse to be divided by the criminals who only seek to take advantage of us, and we need to come together to reject and expel all in our community who are harming the fabric and health of our community~! Sincerely, Mike
Yeah, all of our rights and even our privileges leave off when we are negatively affecting others...except when we negatively affect criminals and their criminals behavior...because it's not a right or privilege to do harm for self-gain no matter how subtle.
The nations founders knew that we could never 'self govern' without God or whatever Higher powers you may perceive oversees our lives, guiding us by higher principles.
There is, of course 'the god of this world' which is why we have the utter chaos and destruction we are witnessing.
Enough are following 'the god of this world'...more of us are choosing another higher better God of 'All That Is' ( I believe), that wants us to experience the darkness and then choose the light. IMO. TRUTH, JUSTICE, LIBERTY, TOUGH LOVE!🧐
Life is a series of tests that we are given to pass or fail, and God (The Higher Power) is the one who is the real Judge ;-) Those who have lived the good life of "service to others" will be the winners and those who have led selfish lives taking advantage of others are always the real losers and I doubt that the future will be a happy one for them~! There is nothing wrong with taking care of our own lives, but many are going to find that doing harm to others is not going to go well for them. In fact, for the past couple of weeks every day there have been examples of criminals being caught, especially criminals in the US government, and the legal prosecutions of them is not far away once they become known for what they have done by the general public. Most Americans will be VERY happy to see what unfolds this year, of course except for the criminals who have betrayed America and the criminals of humanity who have been doing SO much harm to everyone~! Most people don't know it, but in his first term President Trump legalized hanging and the firing squad for those who commit treason and/or crimes against humanity, so this is only the beginning of what is yet to come ;-) Keep the faith~! Sincerely, Mike
The school board and their supporters will inevitably see the failing of the levy and bond as being the fault of those who oppose it and use it to indoctrinate the kids with their emotions citing people don't care about them.
I'd like an equal opportunity minute with those same kids to let them know that those who are speaking against these measures aren't the cause of their failure to learn. It's the people who are elected to lead them that are failing because there's incongruity in their message and actions.
Yeah, keep your hands and mind off 'the children of the state!'😱
In their twisted minds the children are 'theirs' to shape and mold as they have been indoctrinated to do...not every one of course but look at the whole ball of wax.
The good folks on the inside are marginalized, censored, coerced, to keep quiet or suffer the consequences.
TRUTH, JUSTICE, LIBERTY, TOUGH LOVE!
I believe we have enough good people in our county to form charter schools to completely replace public/state schools. A lot of teachers would be in for it.
Children. They are so important. Those that take advantage of them is despicable. When I vote for Children, I can only hope that those in charge care about those Children and not about their personal wallets.
Jeff, have you noticed that no one gives you quotes anymore? That’s because you’ve fully moved into “everything is proof my argument is correct,” and you’ve proven long-term lack of journalistic integrity.
Edit: Thank you for proving my point in your response comment.
The Superintendent has given me quotes. I appreciate how responsive she is... a dying trait of our leadership in Clallam County.
You're right that the County Commissioners, Sequim Good Governance League, Sequim City Council, PA Mayor Kate Dexter, Center for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Board of Clallam Transit, Bonneville Environmental Foundation, North Olympic Land Trust and Habitat for Humanity have all ignored me.
The Jamestown Tribe ignores me and has gone the extra step of blocking what I can see on their Facebook page. The Dungeness River Management Team will not include me either, regardless of how many times I sign up for their email alerts. That's why I'm so thankful for subscribers sharing information with me.
I'm not worried. The number of people scrambling to hide information from us tells me we are making progress.
Your perspective is interesting in that when you couple it with RCW 42.30.010 becomes an alarming trend IMO. The people who are in positions of power who seemed to be responsive to questions from the citizens no longer want to respond. If I'm reading it correctly you're suggesting it's the result of how Jeff reports those interactions.
I've always believed the opposite to be true, and is supported by any Communications 101 study. The sender of the message has the responsibility to ensure their message is understood. In the absence of understanding, all people will apply their own best guess as to what the message and intent is all about. Now if Jeff was to assert the reasons and intentions are wild baseless claims then I'd have no interest in reading his articles. But at the heart of it lack of transparency is real and as such it's as good as we're afforded in Clallam County.
Maybe your true complaint would best be formed to demand the Sequim Gazette and Peninsula Daily News actually do their jobs to report better? If your complaint was to the elected officials and organizations who make decisions that affect our lives to do a better job at being transparent then that might be another way to see this mess we're in. If we don't have Jeff (like him or not) we have nothing.
The excerpt below is from the legislative intent of RCW 42.30.010 as it relates to the Open Public Meeting Act (OPMA). Every citizen should familiarize themselves with it. When you look at the specific words and message it conveys I'd argue that Jeff is a symptom of the indiscretions of our elected officials. I thank him for attempting to shine a light in places we'd otherwise be ignorant about allowing a handful of idealogical people to decide what's in our best interest.
Legislative declaration.
The legislature finds and declares that all public commissions, boards, councils, committees, subcommittees, departments, divisions, offices, and all other public agencies of this state and subdivisions thereof exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of this chapter that their actions be taken openly and that their deliberations be conducted openly.
The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed and informing the people's public servants of their views so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created. For these reasons, even when not required by law, public agencies are encouraged to incorporate and accept public comment during their decision-making process.
The SG and PDN are short-staffed, and so don't have the resources to do much more than fill the white space around the ads with the lowest-hanging fruit. Much of that comes from news releases. Hence all the articles about artists, clubs, etc.
Moreover, Sound Publishing, which owns both newspapers, has apparently adopted a non-confrontational approach to so-called "community journalism," and this includes mostly neutering their editorial page. They're walking on eggshells so as to not upset advertisers.
When I was editor of a Sound Publishing newspaper 25 years ago, we were a watchdog, and I routinely called out government for over-reach and over-stepping. I wasn't concerned with the P&L statement; that was the publisher's and ad manager's concern.
Bertha Cooper's ramblings about Trump and death, and death and Trump, are op-ed fodder. So is Don Brunell's.
The websites/internet has discouraged local public education re government agency activities. Agencies may provide some sort of an announcement, but provide only a web addresses if you want to learn more. This practice discourages public participation as well as public education since many folks don’t bother to navigate the maze of agency websites. The websites I believe discourage a portion of public knowledge of local controversial events involving government activities. Of course the newspapers cannot afford to cover controversial topics since they are beholden to advertising revenue.
Thanks Jeff for another great Sunday wake up.
Transparent only for those with x-ray glasses. $300,000,000.00 over 20 years could provide charter school for 2,000 students per year. How far would that money go to help families home school students? Our school buildings are not new and need repair, and also in need of repair is the educational curriculum. We in Sequim graduate students with below average scores across the main objectives of Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic. Is it possible that money spent to hire a law firm, to write a bond proposal that seems to promote safety and esthetics while hiding the true cost, could be better spent improving educational outcomes for students? I have heard the plea “WE NEED MORE MONEY FOR SCHOOLS” for over 60 years and have seen 60 years of decline in skills and competency of average graduates, along with increases in administrative costs. Let’s follow the money when making a decision on these propositions. Keep an eye one the pimps promising us.
You're welcome, Eric.
Humane Society asking for money: "What about the kittens and puppies."
Peninsula Behavioral Health building luxury homeless housing: "What about the most vulnerable in our community."
County Commissioners raising taxes and fees: "We need this for government to work efficiently."
Jamestown Tribe with nearly everything: "We need this to save salmon."
Habitat for Humanity getting $800k: "We need this for housing affordability."
Sequim Schools: "We need this for the children."
Instead of heartstrings being pulled, manipulation, and deceit, try just leveling with us. We are a pretty smart populace when given all the facts.
Amen. We need more. Who are WE? Are WE the commissioners, the NGO's, the TRIBE, the NON-PROFITS,the SCHOOLS?? And who are WE who pays?
'This little piggy had roast beef...this little piggy had none...this little piggy went We-We-We...all the way home!'
Some of the piggies are doing quite a bit better than others...BY STEALING FROM THE REST OF THE PIGGIES!
We need a 'big bad wolf' to blow down the houses of corruption housing the 'selected' criminals. It's a Spiritual battle being played out in the material world.
Revealing, as painful as it may be...has to come first...God loves a good drama!🎭😁
Very eloquently put, Robert! Interesting how obvious the subtleties become when a spotlight is aimed at a little bit of word play. “For the devil can recite scripture for his purpose”. Whether the language was adopted after the deadline to submit any documents opposing it or not, taxpayers expected to shoulder this burden should be given fair, legal opportunity to say so& their voices be impartially heard. I’m not a property owner myself, but I have family & friends here that are & I cannot in good conscience vote in favor of a levy that is so clearly & deliberately tricking voters into approving their own doom. God bless all who are being victimized by this sideways language. The more I read about all the corruption here, the more anxious I feel. My interest in leaving not only this county, but Washington State in general is beginning to snowball into desperation. What is happening to my beloved hometown quite literally makes me physically ill
I/We understand Kirsten...unfortunately there are infiltrators in all gov'ts...even conservative Idaho had their water czar try to cut off water to 500,000 acres of farmland...they supposedly need the land and water for lithium mining...it also conveniently reduces food availability and destroys farmers...a win-win for deep state.
If you can find a safe place to ride out the storm, blessings for you...most of us will have to 'shelter in place' as things unfold.
This state is getting the attention of the new federal admin. (which is probably a two-edged sword) but seems to be dismantling the corruption (hope the power doesn't corrupt the new folks) and Washington State is def. on their radar!
The insanity is pretty much in the open now, so that's a start...
Don't allow it to make you sick...then they win...I struggle with this too...any sensitive intelligent being is/will be feeling deeply disturbed by what's going on...we do what we can...and release it... day by day, minute by minute...that's the way to not get ill!
"Micro-dosing the hard truth by making little jokes about it" (Akorn on YouTube)😁
0hhhh, succinct...
Eric, thank you.
And to think we have arrived here (not without problems) on the backs of men and women many of whom were educated in one room schools.
I'll be forever grateful to Sequim Rotary for sending me on an exchange to South America during my senior year of high school.
In Chile, I attended public school (considered the lowest end of the educational system). Classrooms were bare and unadorned with paper mâché planets and posters about reading. The two-story building was made of cinderblock, and the facilities were old but clean and well-maintained. Those Chilean students ran circles around me in math and science and (almost) knew more about English than I did. 27 years ago, their education was far superior to my B-average career at Sequim High. As for sports, there was a small gymnasium there, but athletics seemed to be everywhere in the community -- there were leagues and teams and opportunities to pick up a soccer ball and play any day of the week.
I recently toured the SHS campus, and yes, it is decrepit. I don't doubt there is asbestos in the countertops, walls, and floor tiles. I saw the uneven sidewalks and improper drainage. I also saw tremendous neglect and a lack of proactive maintenance. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
What I didn't hear mentioned much during the SSD presentation was a word that, in my opinion, is the most important reason for our schools: "Education."
In 1997 and 1998, the hardworking teachers and ambitious Chilean students of Liceo Oscar Castro Zuniga public school in Rancagua, Chile, taught me an important lesson: Education does not come from buildings.
THIS ☝🏼
And yet unlike now a vast number of American schooled children, you can read and write...
☝🏻☝🏻Ditto
Be careful JJW, my guess is the Dungeness School House was not seismic proof and just taught reading, writing, and ‘rithmatic.
McDonald Grade school on Bainbridge Island was not .1949? we ran outside. Duh.Walked to school.Uphill both ways. Picked up beer,pop bottles on the way home ..for deposit at local store.To much information.Old age.
I see you are being labeled as crazy. Typical ammo of Sequim anytime someone questions anything. Now when I see someone from Sequim being labeled crazy, I know they are telling the truth. Keep going.
Good advice!
Bonds requests, etc. need to be very CLEAR about the cost to taxpayers. My property tax is almost 500 a month. Until the school district can show they are good stewards of our money AND the state, I will not vote for higher taxes on anything. While the upper echelon of the school district get more and more, everyone else gets less and less.
Time to look at charter schools. Our education system as a whole needs a "remodel". Not just the buildings. As a school district employee, I am disappointed in the downturn of student behavior, the rarely given punishments, and lack of respect from the parents also. Asking me for more money while the system looks to punish everyone except the students and their parents for abusive behavior, is a shot in the dark. The amount of students I see on a daily basis that cannot read, nor write in the 4th and 5th grade is astounding. It is sad.
Final note, by adding athletics to bonds, this further alienates the majority of the school population. A very small percentage of student are actually participating in sports, cheer, etc. How about education and student management ? Holding the student and the parent responsible instead of the teacher or driver. We cannot continue to pour money down a losing issue. There are plenty of great parents and kids out there. They could use a couple grand for charter school. Give THEM the chance.
I, too, worked for a school district, and I know exactly how you feel about the students' and parents' behaviors - very, very disrespectful to teachers and staff with NO repercussions. I also firmly believe in school choice, which made me unpopular with some of my co-workers. Kids need an education, not a bloated, over-funded administration owned by the unions.
Hear, hear Veronica.
YES!!! Well said! It’s fantastic to get a perspective from an actual school district employee on this issue. I too have seen & felt the results of few to no consequences for the students & parents who abuse the system, as well as the degradation of education in our school system. My father, my siblings & myself as well as my own children- all attended Sequim Schools. That’s looking back over a time period beginning in the mid 1960’s to our current year of 2025 & the decline is clearly painted in red for anyone who’s actually watching. That’s 60+ years of decline in education!! & here I thought it was supposed to improved w/ time 🤷♀️ considering the tax increase doesn’t seem to include education at all, seems unnecessary really. Thank you so much for speaking up, I feel your perspective is important & in my opinion greatly it’s appreciated 👍🏼
So, a new law firm was hired by the school board. What is the name of the firm, and what necessitated the change? Transparency, Ms. Nikels? This is the SOP that CA used to get bonds, levies, fees, and taxes passed, including "misprinting" the dollar amount on the ballot. (Look for that tactic to happen here soon.) This is why I always vote NO on any measure. There is always a hidden agenda with every measure/initiative/proposition. Thank you, Jeff. This is one article the public can refer to when voting on future elections!
You're welcome, Denise. Looks like Lee Marchisio works for a law firm out of Seattle: https://www.foster.com/people-lee-marchisio
Front and center on their page under "Our Firm" is their "Opportunity and Progress Council" (fancy name for DEI). It states "DEI Foster Garvey’s Opportunity & Progress Council is dedicated to creating a workplace where inclusion is intentional and everyone has the chance to succeed." It also says:
"To promote an inclusive workplace, we provide annual training to all of our professionals."
They have 150 attorneys in seven cities plus who knows how many support staff. I wonder how much of what our school district paid for their legal services has gone to this training and to the employees needed to keep their DEI department up and running?
Terrific research Kathy.
Under the tab "School Districts" is a Construction heading. I am keeping my eye on this one.
Yes do NOT hire within the County... Just raise taxes go out of County.
"Foreigners are preferred by tyrants". The outsiders have only their own interests at heart and are loyal only to whoever gets them paid.
Draconian stuff...'1984' is alive and well...the people will prevail though...or die trying! TRUTH, JUSTICE, LIBERTY, TOUGH LOVE!😊
I was told-- but have not confirmed it-- that California floats school bonds every election. One would think that any new bonds would ADD to the unspent money of the old bonds, but I was told that it REPLACES the old bonds, freeing the unspent money from the previous bond for the politicians' favorite projects and pockets. We need the DOGE team to investigate it.
I can't confirm that with citing a specific bond, but it is a way to convert the gravy train into an endless buffet.
That tactic already has. Did they inform you what this gone will cost you, or even how much it will cost us?
So this time around, they added athletic facilities to the bond in hopes of getting it passed. That’s called pandering.
Feels like an ad to buy something.
Under the law, they have to word them very carefully because it’s related to the wording of the indenture (legal description of what the bonds are for) on the bonds they sell.
Good excuse for ineptitude. Don’t change it, blame it on someone else.
Yes, carefully crafted to conceal truth!
Legal-eez!
Eases the way for corruption. Bring them all tumbling down in disgrace!😎
Probably because it is!
Over half of the state general fund already goes to education. The state is constitutionally required to fund education. The county is not. “It is the paramount duty of the state to make ample
provision for the education of all children..."
Verdict: if the county is paying for education....any of it... that means the State of Washington is not doing its part. The county should be suing the state instead of going after the county taxpayers.
Question: Has the cost of providing education to illegal immigrants prevented the state from complying with its constitutional duty.
Washington had over 300 thousand illegal immigrants. Of those we cannot tell how man are children because their status is protected under state law.
In short, the Clallam County tax payers are now paying the price for Pugetropolis Snohomish- Thurston, Van-Portland, and Eastern Washington sanctuary cities, that harbor illegal's and suck up education dollars into basic education and do not leave enough in the capital project funds.
King County has 18,000 trackable immigrants. They don't track all immigrants. Clallam and Jefferson are lumped together. There are 11,933 immigrants in those two counties. 83 percent are Spanish.
https://cis.org/Report/Mapping-Impact-Immigration-Public-Schools
I am seeing a lot of immigrants in our public schools. I see my state suing to pay for the education of over 100,000 illegal immigrants who really are not entitled to paid education.
Yes, they will be taxing you to pay for schooling illegal immigrants, our state has been so generous to educate. They pay no taxes so you are basically paying their taxes for them.. Now you have to pay to fix the buildings they can't afford to keep up, because the basic education for illegals sucked the capital projects fund dry.
They cite the state constitution. but our state constitution defers to the U.S. Constitution on immigration which the courts have routinely upheld despite many tries by states to bypass federal hierarchy. The feds set up a system of naturalization to obtain citizenship. In short, our state has usurped that constitutional pathway, and passed laws that conflict with federal law which is
supreme. Our state citizens will have to sue in federal court to block funding for illegal's. Vote no on any local bond or levy, until somebody else pays for the education of people who are not citizens.
This sums up the situation PERFECTLY, Jeff. It's just plain manipulation of the vulnerable - at our expense - to pad official's pockets. Expose them all.
There is some irony in having worked hard enough to own your own home complete with property only to be targeted as an exclusive public funding source. There are recent and ongoing large scale residential developments. The occupants of those new homes will have no/none/"0" past investment in the neighborhood; educational system in particular. These developments should be pro-rata taxed for the infrastructure they inherit. Regarding these school levies, voting no is a defacto approval. With all educational system employees and school age parents being an automatic yes, the required yes percentage is guaranteed. A no vote only serves to meet the mandatory participation percentage of the voting public. The only current possible path to defeat a school levy is to not vote.
Garry, are you saying that if these bond/levy measures were not presented as the ‘special elections’ that they have been, (which costs an additional $168,000.00 as I understand it), and instead were presented during a typical scheduled election, that theses levies/bonds might have a tougher time passing?
For the life of me, I have not been able to figure out WHY these are always ‘special elections’ and never presented during a regular election. Why start out spending over $100,000.00 that you could have saved? If this is the reason, you have blown my mind!
Special elections are intentionally held because these typically have lower voter turnout. This in turn makes it easier for ballot supporters to get the "yes" vote out and overcome the "No" voters.
Special elections need to be made unlawful. All elections, other than recall and primary elections, should be held every other November. Enough with this nonsense that tilts the electorate in favor of government schools.
Your point of spending so much money to get money is well taken. As to the passage of these special elections, the only path to defeating them is to not vote. The yes % is always high due to all who benefit from the $ voting yes. It is the mandatory participation % required of all the voter rolls that is vulnerable.
Yet again another stunning article and investigation into the NON-TRANSPARENT functions going on in Clallam County. Thanks again Jeff. Unfortunately with our kids being 40th out of 40 in the world (Last Place) and with the highest cost per pupil (First Place), it seems like dropping another whopping 140ish million is not the problem. As another respondent said "Follow the Money" and it always seems to come back to the people approving these things. We have already voted this down. Excellent work Jeff. Enjoy and stay safe.
You're welcome, David.
Jeff, also wanted to let you know, if you do not know already, the Jamestown Tribe has converted their “Training Center” on the corner of Hwy 101 and W Sequim Bay Rd to the new and improved “Jamestown Water Utility”. I find this quite interesting as the developer of Seaview, on the Coast, is planning to develop 600 units near John Wayne Marina.
Some of the questions I heard at the meetings, which goes to your article of water supply, is how will this development get water as well as Water Treatment. It seems more than a coincidence this happened and looking at this far away, maybe the tribe will take on this portion of work of course for a fee…. FYI. Thx
I moved to Sequim in 2022 and because of the new sale received jump in property taxes. Ok fine. The following year I received another jump in property taxes bringing my re-assessement up to 62% in two years. I challenged the 2nd assessment and found that the Assessor changed the "birthdate" of my house from 1973 to "effectively" 2013 because of remodeling.
Another individual told me that he had put a porch on his house and was sent drone shots by the Assessor and was re-assessed. My point is, I thought property tax assessment would be less aggressive in Sequim than in Seattle where I was re-assessed every year. I think it is a statewide policy to go after property taxes. I calculated the proposed assessment for the levy. At $1.85 per $1,000 of assessed value, my property would be 600 x $1.85 = $1,110. Not insubstantial considering the interest on the levy was not included, and that I think school choice should be offered...the money to follow the student.
Thank you Jeff Tozzer for your great summary of the recent horrific history of our government in action. Good God~! This should have every decent Individual in our community rightfully enraged~! The obvious misdeeds of the local government and the underhanded behavior of the local tribal government and other entities that always have their hands in the public funds speak for themselves and absolutely clearly prove foul intent. I understand that "private corporations" may have a right to some degree of privacy, however it is criminally Insane to claim that "right to privacy" if they are taking so much as a single penny of taxpayer funds OR dodging accountability through tax incentives, tax loopholes, or government grants derived from taxpayer funds~! After hearing numerous accounts of the atrocious way that the local tribal government is treating its own tribal members when they don't "stay on the reservation" and keep their mouths shut about the highly questionable tribal government actions, I am becoming very concerned about the tribal members themselves entrapped by a power mad tribal government~! ALL members of this community need to refuse to be divided by the criminals who only seek to take advantage of us, and we need to come together to reject and expel all in our community who are harming the fabric and health of our community~! Sincerely, Mike
You're always welcome, Michael.
Yeah, all of our rights and even our privileges leave off when we are negatively affecting others...except when we negatively affect criminals and their criminals behavior...because it's not a right or privilege to do harm for self-gain no matter how subtle.
The nations founders knew that we could never 'self govern' without God or whatever Higher powers you may perceive oversees our lives, guiding us by higher principles.
There is, of course 'the god of this world' which is why we have the utter chaos and destruction we are witnessing.
Enough are following 'the god of this world'...more of us are choosing another higher better God of 'All That Is' ( I believe), that wants us to experience the darkness and then choose the light. IMO. TRUTH, JUSTICE, LIBERTY, TOUGH LOVE!🧐
Right you are Robert~!
Life is a series of tests that we are given to pass or fail, and God (The Higher Power) is the one who is the real Judge ;-) Those who have lived the good life of "service to others" will be the winners and those who have led selfish lives taking advantage of others are always the real losers and I doubt that the future will be a happy one for them~! There is nothing wrong with taking care of our own lives, but many are going to find that doing harm to others is not going to go well for them. In fact, for the past couple of weeks every day there have been examples of criminals being caught, especially criminals in the US government, and the legal prosecutions of them is not far away once they become known for what they have done by the general public. Most Americans will be VERY happy to see what unfolds this year, of course except for the criminals who have betrayed America and the criminals of humanity who have been doing SO much harm to everyone~! Most people don't know it, but in his first term President Trump legalized hanging and the firing squad for those who commit treason and/or crimes against humanity, so this is only the beginning of what is yet to come ;-) Keep the faith~! Sincerely, Mike
Again, the local newspapers asleep at the wheel. Too busy chasing minutiae.
No, they have a woke ideology and it's part of the plan to only allow one agenda/point of view...there are no accidents.🥸
The school board and their supporters will inevitably see the failing of the levy and bond as being the fault of those who oppose it and use it to indoctrinate the kids with their emotions citing people don't care about them.
I'd like an equal opportunity minute with those same kids to let them know that those who are speaking against these measures aren't the cause of their failure to learn. It's the people who are elected to lead them that are failing because there's incongruity in their message and actions.
Yeah, keep your hands and mind off 'the children of the state!'😱
In their twisted minds the children are 'theirs' to shape and mold as they have been indoctrinated to do...not every one of course but look at the whole ball of wax.
The good folks on the inside are marginalized, censored, coerced, to keep quiet or suffer the consequences.
TRUTH, JUSTICE, LIBERTY, TOUGH LOVE!
I believe we have enough good people in our county to form charter schools to completely replace public/state schools. A lot of teachers would be in for it.
You can put lipstick on a pig, but...😜
Children. They are so important. Those that take advantage of them is despicable. When I vote for Children, I can only hope that those in charge care about those Children and not about their personal wallets.
Jeff, have you noticed that no one gives you quotes anymore? That’s because you’ve fully moved into “everything is proof my argument is correct,” and you’ve proven long-term lack of journalistic integrity.
Edit: Thank you for proving my point in your response comment.
The Superintendent has given me quotes. I appreciate how responsive she is... a dying trait of our leadership in Clallam County.
You're right that the County Commissioners, Sequim Good Governance League, Sequim City Council, PA Mayor Kate Dexter, Center for Inclusive Entrepreneurship, Board of Clallam Transit, Bonneville Environmental Foundation, North Olympic Land Trust and Habitat for Humanity have all ignored me.
The Jamestown Tribe ignores me and has gone the extra step of blocking what I can see on their Facebook page. The Dungeness River Management Team will not include me either, regardless of how many times I sign up for their email alerts. That's why I'm so thankful for subscribers sharing information with me.
I'm not worried. The number of people scrambling to hide information from us tells me we are making progress.
They are NOT ignoring you. They are scared! Speechless.
I think they are still smugly arrogant for now...hopefully to change very soon!🤓
Good morning.
Your perspective is interesting in that when you couple it with RCW 42.30.010 becomes an alarming trend IMO. The people who are in positions of power who seemed to be responsive to questions from the citizens no longer want to respond. If I'm reading it correctly you're suggesting it's the result of how Jeff reports those interactions.
I've always believed the opposite to be true, and is supported by any Communications 101 study. The sender of the message has the responsibility to ensure their message is understood. In the absence of understanding, all people will apply their own best guess as to what the message and intent is all about. Now if Jeff was to assert the reasons and intentions are wild baseless claims then I'd have no interest in reading his articles. But at the heart of it lack of transparency is real and as such it's as good as we're afforded in Clallam County.
Maybe your true complaint would best be formed to demand the Sequim Gazette and Peninsula Daily News actually do their jobs to report better? If your complaint was to the elected officials and organizations who make decisions that affect our lives to do a better job at being transparent then that might be another way to see this mess we're in. If we don't have Jeff (like him or not) we have nothing.
The excerpt below is from the legislative intent of RCW 42.30.010 as it relates to the Open Public Meeting Act (OPMA). Every citizen should familiarize themselves with it. When you look at the specific words and message it conveys I'd argue that Jeff is a symptom of the indiscretions of our elected officials. I thank him for attempting to shine a light in places we'd otherwise be ignorant about allowing a handful of idealogical people to decide what's in our best interest.
Legislative declaration.
The legislature finds and declares that all public commissions, boards, councils, committees, subcommittees, departments, divisions, offices, and all other public agencies of this state and subdivisions thereof exist to aid in the conduct of the people's business. It is the intent of this chapter that their actions be taken openly and that their deliberations be conducted openly.
The people of this state do not yield their sovereignty to the agencies which serve them. The people, in delegating authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to know. The people insist on remaining informed and informing the people's public servants of their views so that they may retain control over the instruments they have created. For these reasons, even when not required by law, public agencies are encouraged to incorporate and accept public comment during their decision-making process.
The SG and PDN are short-staffed, and so don't have the resources to do much more than fill the white space around the ads with the lowest-hanging fruit. Much of that comes from news releases. Hence all the articles about artists, clubs, etc.
Moreover, Sound Publishing, which owns both newspapers, has apparently adopted a non-confrontational approach to so-called "community journalism," and this includes mostly neutering their editorial page. They're walking on eggshells so as to not upset advertisers.
When I was editor of a Sound Publishing newspaper 25 years ago, we were a watchdog, and I routinely called out government for over-reach and over-stepping. I wasn't concerned with the P&L statement; that was the publisher's and ad manager's concern.
Bertha Cooper's ramblings about Trump and death, and death and Trump, are op-ed fodder. So is Don Brunell's.
The websites/internet has discouraged local public education re government agency activities. Agencies may provide some sort of an announcement, but provide only a web addresses if you want to learn more. This practice discourages public participation as well as public education since many folks don’t bother to navigate the maze of agency websites. The websites I believe discourage a portion of public knowledge of local controversial events involving government activities. Of course the newspapers cannot afford to cover controversial topics since they are beholden to advertising revenue.
This is how they do it...it's clearly illegal what they are doing...so they hire 'agents' to do the dirty work.
There are purportedly around 55,000 NGO's and NPO's being used as 'agents' around the world.
The U.S. cabal through USAID has been funding much of the corruption and all that money is just MADE UP/PRINTED by the 'federal reserve'.
See "The Creature From Jekyll Island" if you don't already know.🤪
I've seen KONP do a better job than the SG and PDN.
This site is the only thing approaching free press we have here right now.
Thank you Jeff and all contributors, even the naysayers.😊
You're welcome, Robert. Thank you and everyone for reading and staying so engaged.
Signs of a legit journalist....
Just because the scope of the conspiracy is beyond your ability to grasp doesn't mean the rest of us must remain in ignorance.
Yes, it really is 'everything is correct' metaphorically speaking...you really can't just make this stuff up.
If you dare, do some of your own research INDEPENDENTLY of the mainstream narrative.
Going along to get along doesn't usually end well for anybody.
Burst your own bubble if you have the courage.
Jeff's exposes are based in fact and he openly says 'in my opinion' when appropriate.
Hope you wake yourself up, Edward😊