The Southern Oregon Government Watch Weekly
At the local government level, there are some similarities with the upcoming May 2026 primary ballot between Jackson County and Josephine County. Each County has two county commissioner positions on the ballot, and there are two local money (tax) related ballot measures in the voters’ pamphlet for each county.
There are four candidates for the two open spots for Jackson County commissioners. There are fourteen candidates for the two open Josephine County commissioner seats. Even the County Clerk position and County Treasurer positions in Josephine County have three candidates each, forcing a primary vote this May.
The relative chaos we’ve seen in Josephine County, driven largely by controversial moves made by Josephine County Commissioners over the last two years, has seemingly engaged a larger number of candidates than we normally see in Josephine County. In Josephine County, a clear pattern has also emerged among candidates for various county positions. In my opinion, there is a group of aligned candidates for each position that is clearly gearing up towards a continuation of the chaos and a continuation of a narrow self-centered agenda, and other candidates that are clearly interested in restoring sanity and accountability in Josephine County. Vote accordingly.
But also, don’t forget to do your homework on the local money measures on your ballots in Josephine County and Jackson County. You can start by reading the voters’ pamphlet for Josephine County here and for Jackson County here.
Measure 17-127 Animal Shelter and Animal Control Five Year Local Option Tax will be in front of all voters in Josephine County. This is a levy renewal, asking voters for a new rate of 16 cents per $1000 of assessed value to replace the old levy at a rate of 11 cents. The increase would cost an average household close to $1 per month. A certain level of Animal Control and Shelter services is mandated by both the County Charter and State law. But many voters may not know how busy the animal shelter really is and how busy the Josephine County animal control officers are in recent years.
The Animal Shelter served 2,270 animals last year and receives support from over 150 unpaid volunteers. In 2025, Animal Control Officers responded to 3394 calls, up almost 50% in number from four years ago when the last levy was renewed. Almost one third of those calls, or close to 1100 calls last year, were calls handled within the City of Grants Pass. This is a service that everyone throughout the County uses, so to speak, which is why all voters throughout the County will get to vote on the measure.
Voters residing in the Illinois Valley Rural Fire Protection District will weigh in on Measure 17-126, a 5-Year Local Option Tax to hire and maintain Firefighter/EMTs. The proposed rate is 99 cents per $1000 of assessed value, and this is also a renewal of an existing levy at a higher rate as compared to the last levy period. The ballot language says the levy is for the purpose of hiring and maintaining Firefighters/EMTs and for no other purpose. If voters approve, the total property tax rate for the IV Rural Fire Protection District will still be close to the average total tax rate for rural fire districts in southern Oregon.
Jackson County voters within the Rogue Valley Transportation District will vote on Measure 15-240, renewal of a 5-Year Local Option Tax for general operations of the district at the same rate of 13 cents. This operational levy has been in place since voters first approved this levy in 2016. Josephine County, despite operating a transit service, does not have a similar tax. The explanatory statement of the measure states that a few cuts have already been made to RVTD routes and hours recently, and without this levy more cuts would need to be made.
And finally, voters in Ashland School District 5 will weigh in on Measure 15-241, a 5-year levy renewal of a local option operating levy at a rate of $1.29 per $1,000 of assessed value. This is another example of a levy that is used in a school district in Jackson County but no school districts in Josephine County have a similar levy. The explanatory statement says Ashland voters have approved supplementary local option taxes for the school district since 1994. The current $1.29 rate has been in place since 2007. This levy provides for approximately 10% of the district’s operating budget and helps to fund athletics, fine arts programs, physical education, counseling and mental health support, world languages, and general classroom instruction.
These sorts of local measures are what help shape and define our local communities. Local money ballot measures play a big role in quality of life, cost of living, and achieving the shared goals of a community. Some communities like Ashland have made a choice of limiting growth and placing an emphasis on a higher level of local government services. Have you ever noticed there are very few chain fast food drive-through restaurants in the City of Ashland? This is partially because Ashland has set such a high level of development and SDC fees.
Ashland School District 5 has a total school enrollment of approximately 10% less than it had about 15 years ago. Grants Pass School District 7, in comparison, has close to the same amount of total enrollment today than it had about 15 years ago. The Rogue Community College enrollment growth rate in the last four years has been about three times the average growth across Oregon community colleges. There are reasons for these differences, and some of the reasons are in our control at the local level!