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Law enforcement service district passing with slim margin for now

As of Nov. 9 Josephine County Clerk Rhiannon Henkels said the law enforcement tax district measure was ahead by 332 votes. There were 444 contested ballots. It’s unknown which are in the city vs. county.
Henkels also said mail in ballots postmarked Nov. 7 had until Nov. 14 to arrive and will be added to the total. One person has contacted the clerk about the process of a hand count and was referred to the state. Hand recounts must be paid for by the requester.
The district will raise property tax by 0.99 cents per $1,000 of the assessed value.
In a community meeting held in Cave Junction Oct. 20 at Wild River Brewing and Pizza, Sheriff Dave Daniel estimated the approximate $6 million will be used to fund patrol and dispatch services for the sheriff’s department, including 20-25 deputies, 6.5 dispatchers and 1.5 evidence techs.
The district will cover rural Josephine County and the city of Cave Junction as Grants Pass opted out and overwhelmingly passed a levy supporting the Grants Pass Police Dept.