With a razor-thin margin between supporters and opponents of a special district to fund the county’s consolidated 911 dispatch center, the outcome of that ballot measure won’t be known until roughly 200 provisional ballots are counted on Monday.

By early Wednesday morning, opponents of the funding measure were ahead by just 85 votes, with a tally of 15,035 (50.14 percent) against the 911 district and 14,950 (49.86 percent) in favor.

The 85-vote difference equals .28 percent.

Provisional ballots are used for late voters who have moved within the county or have moved here from another Montana county and can include ballots in any cases where there are questions about voter eligibility.

The goal of establishing a special emergency communications district in Flathead County is to provide an equitable source of ongoing funding for the 911 dispatch center. If approved, the district would be funded with a flat annual fee similar to the way the county’s Solid Waste District is funded.

The maximum fee would be $25 per residential unit or $50 for each commercial unit, up to a maximum of 30 units for each commercial property. The fees would raise about $1.8 million annually.

The district would erase a double-taxation issue created by the current funding process.

The 911 center is now funded by county and city taxes, so residents of Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls pay both city and county taxes for the consolidated center.

County Administrator Mike Pence said the county commissioners will decide whether to ask for a recount once the full count is known after provisional ballots are counted. He added, however, that he believes it’s unlikely the county would call for a recount.

“We’re confident the vote-counting and all the processes were accurate,” Pence said.

County Clerk and Recorder and Elections Administrator Paula Robinson said a countywide recount of the ballot measure would require a considerable amount of manpower.

If a recount were authorized, Robinson said she would utilize as many county employees as possible, estimating it would take somewhere between 16 to 20 people to conduct the recount.

It’s not clear how much the county would have to spend on such a recount.

If the final margin in an election race is less than one-half of 1 percent, the defeated candidate may request a recount, according to Secretary of State and Chief Elections Officer Linda McCulloch.

 Under Montana law, if the margin of difference is between one-quarter and one-half of 1 percent, to request a recount the defeated candidate would have to post a bond in accordance with county estimates to cover the cost of the recount.

If the margin is less than one-quarter of 1 percent, the defeated candidate must file a verified petition but does not have to post a bond.

Should the 911 district measure fail, Pence said the commissioners could decide to put it before voters again sometime in the future.

“We knew it wouldn’t be a landslide,” he said. “It’s hard sell, no matter what” when it involves a tax increase.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.