Morrow County voters get to decide in November if they want to renew, for the fourth time, the North Morrow Vector Control District tax levy.
Measure 25-102 is a four-year local option levy that generates additional funding to help the district to control the spread of disease-transmitting mosquitoes.
The proposal is a continuation of the prior option levy that imposes 10 cents per $1,000 of assessed value for mosquito disease prevention.
The funding helps to improve response time to West Nile virus and other emerging mosquito-borne diseases, increase utilization of aircraft, upgrade available technology and maintain vehicle and equipment replacements.
“It’s kind of above and beyond our normal regular tax levy,” North Morrow Vector Control District manager Greg Barron said. “This is an option levy that the voters have to agree to. They have to vote on it and say, ‘Yes, we want to continue this additional revenue to control West Nile virus.’”
The measure was first introduced to Irrigon and Boardman in 2008 and has been renewed every general election since.
The mosquito and vector control district serves 274 square miles of residential, industrial, farmland and more than 3,000 acres of wildlife refuges.
“We have all disease transmitting mosquitoes in this district,” Barron said. “We need to have every type of advantage over those mosquitoes.”
According to the measure, the proposed levy would cost property owners in the county an estimated $30 per year, which will raise approximately $300,000 annually, during the four years for a total of $1.2 million. That estimation is based on the best available information from the Morrow County assessor.
Barron said his team is constantly monitoring mosquitoes and their breeding sites weekly during their season, from April to the end of October. During the off season, he and his team work on outreach programs and public education efforts to keep people informed.
The general election is Nov. 5.
For more information on other local and statewide ballot measures and local races is available on county websites.
