SANDPOINT — By the time the final ballots were counted shortly after midnight Tuesday, Lake Pend Oreille School District’s supplemental levy passed with just over 64 percent of the vote.

The final vote showed 4,991 voters favoring the $17 million measure while 2,806 voted against the proposal.

As of Daily Bee deadline, the Lake Pend Oreille School District's levy request received a total of 3,680 votes, with 2,496 in favor and 1,184 against. The West Bonner County School District also saw its levy pass, 732 yes votes to 522 no votes. Of Bonner County voters in the Lakeland Joint School District, 6 voted for the levy and 3 voted against. The measure passed overall.

Across the state, more than $700 million in school district bonds and levies went to voters Tuesday.

Of that, Bonner County residents voted on nearly $41 million in supplemental levies between Lake Pend Oreille, West Bonner and Lakeland school districts.

The $17 million supplemental replacement levy in the Lake Pend Oreille School District has been a controversial topic in the community for several months, since discussions began in October. Therefore, it was with great anticipation that district staff and officials awaited the results Tuesday.

"So much time, energy and resources have gone toward doing the best that we can to educate the public as to what they are voting on," LPOSD superintendent Shawn Woodward said Tuesday evening.

"At this point, it is definitely nerve-wracking waiting, and we just hope that between all of us we did a good job ensuring that accurate information is out there."

After a series of meetings detailing the needs and requests by each department in the district, trustees agreed to the amount of $17 million. The levy would replace the district's current supplemental levy, which expires in June. Supplemental funds cover approximately 30 percent of all district operations.

The current rate for taxpayers is $176 per $100,000 of net taxable value. At $8.3 million for the first year of the proposed levy, the rate for taxpayers would increase to $180 per $100,000 of net taxable value — a $4 increase from the current rate. In the second year, at $8.7 million, the rate would be $184 per $100,000 of net taxable value.

Levy dollars in the district fund one-third of all staff, all academic and athletic extracurricular activities, technology and curricular material, professional development, will extend full-day kindergarten and support Clark Fork Junior/Senior High School's experiential learning program. The levy would also support an elementary school counselor and full-time certified nursing assistant.

Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.