What’s on my November ballot in Sherwood?
The Nov. 4 general election has two county-wide property tax levies, for the libraries and for public safety.
Two county-wide property tax levies are coming up for Sherwood voters: one for the libraries and one for public safety.
When you're ready to vote, you can mail in your ballot or put it in the dropbox at City Hall, 22560 Southwest Pine Street, on or before November 4. Sign up to track your ballot at washcovotes.org.
Library
Measure 34-345 is slated to appear on the upcoming Nov. 4 ballot, proposing to renew a levy for Washington County cooperative library services (WCCLS) that is slated to expire in June 2026. The proposed measure would cost property owners a fixed rate of $0.37 per $1,000 of assessed value, continuing from July 2026-June 2031 — a $0.15 increase from the past $0.22 rate. For a $348,600 home, an owner would pay $10.75 per month or about $129 per year, raising $188,915,688 during the five-year longevity of the levy.
If the levy passes, the libraries would continue to support in-person events for kids and teens, homework support, online tutoring, and public access to computers and wi-fi. It would also support reserving materials for pickup, public access to the library catalog with 1.5 million items, and access to online learning tools, e-books, audiobooks and streaming video.
Last year, more than 10,000 students participated in library programs, and the WCCLS issued 83,549 library cards to public school students since 2019, said Marni Kuyl, assistant county administrator with Washington County. Last year, the WCCLS said 2.4 million visits to its libraries and 7.2 million checkouts — saving patrons $140 million by borrowing instead of purchasing, she said.
If the levy does not pass, the aforementioned library services would not be provided and property taxes would not be increased.
“If the levy does not pass, reductions in library services would occur. These reductions would include reduced open hours, fewer book purchases, fewer reading events, and reduced level of services that link libraries together,” Kuyl said.
Learn more about the library levy at wccls.org/levy.
Police
The public safety Measure 34-346 would replace a five-year levy slated to expire in June 2026, extending it to June 2031. If approved, the replacement levy would set a fixed rate of $0.66 per $1,000 of assessed property value—an increase of $0.19. This would equate to about $6 more per month, or a total of $230 per year.
The expiring levy accounts for 18% of Washington County’s public safety funding, and since then, state funding has decreased and costs have increased, according to the county.
If the levy passes, the property tax would continue for five years and raise an estimated $337 million countywide.
The levy would fund graffiti, vehicle theft, and break-in investigations and prosecutions; child abuse and child pornography prosecutions; expanded protection of survivors of domestic violence; combating the impact of fentanyl and dismantling drug trafficking organizations; fully funding the Washington County jail; and preventing crime with mental health response teams to stabilize volatile situations and help people access care.
If the measure does not pass, these services would not be provided and these property taxes would not continue.
Learn more about the public safety levy at wcor.us/PublicSafetyLevy.
Voters can read all about Washington County’s proposed levies that will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot here.
Bibliography:
Washington County Public Safety Levy statement: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/cao/documents/public-safety-levy-preliminary-explanatory-statement-2025/download?inline
Washington County Public Safety Levy explainer: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/cao/measure-34-346-proposed-local-option-levy-2025
Washington County levies information: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/cao/levies?
Ballot dropbox sites: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/elections/ballot-dropsites
Vote by mail: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/elections/vote-mail
Washington County Elections information: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/elections/current-election
Ballot tracking: https://www.washingtoncountyor.gov/elections/ballot-tracking
Holly Bartholomew
