West Plains voters to consider property tax for water protections in primary election

West Plains voters will decide in August whether they’re willing to establish a 20-year property tax to fund regional aquifer protections.

If approved, Spokane County Measure No. 1 would establish an aquifer protection area to raise funding for water infrastructure, monitoring, and education campaigns for the groundwater encompassing much of western Spokane County. The matter will be decided in August by voters within the proposed boundaries, which stretch from Nine Mile Falls to south of Cheney. The municipality, as well as Medical Lake and Airway Heights, are included in the measure.

Fairchild Air Force Base is not included in the boundary. As a federal parcel, it can only be taxed with permission.

If the measure is approved, single -family homes would pay $15 a year for groundwater use and another $15 if using a septic system . Commercial properties would be charged by meter size, similar to the established aquifer protection rates for the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer.

The protection area for the Spokane Valley -Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer was established in 1985, and approved again by voters in 2004 and 2025. Much of the proposed West Plains protection area is modeled after the established one, including the fees.

Spokane County would pull in about $400,000 annually, according to county estimates. Around $160,000 would be distributed among the participating towns to be used as they see fit and allowed for under state law. That includes planning, stormwater or sewer work, providing drinking water, monitoring, enforcement and education. The $160,000 could also be pooled and directed to regional initiatives.

It’s not a lot of funding, but it would be enough to bring about a better understanding of the geology, recharge rates and sustainable care of the region’s water supply, said Craig Volosing, who helped write the “For” argument in support of the measure for the Spokane County Voters’ Guide.

Volosing, who is a longtime rancher, outdoorsman and conservationist who helped found the Friends of Palisades, said the education aspect is a major part of the appeal for him. He’s seen the benefits the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer Protection Area has provided and has long wondered why the West Plains didn’t have a similar measure in place.

The proposed measure comes while water is front of mind for many West Plains residents, prompted by the discovery of PFAS contaminating the groundwater, which is now the subject of an EPA cleanup order.

Known as “forever chemicals,” perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances are a set of human-made chemicals linked to cancers, heart disease, high cholesterol, thyroid disease, low birth weight and other diseases.

Volosing said it’s natural for his neighbors to have the contamination come to mind when considering the aquifer protection area, and pointed to some of the potential benefits if the tax was in place when the problem was discovered. A dedicated funding stream would’ve existed, and there likely would be an established understanding of the region’s geology and hydrology from studies and education programs.

Much is still needed to be understood about the aquifers underneath the West Plains water resource manager Ben Brattebo said. The measure would provide funding for additional testing, monitoring and infrastructure work.

“Those aquifers are complicated compared to SVRA which is relatively simple and studied quite a bit,” Brattebo said.

The measure received some pushback earlier this year as the county commission discussed and advanced it to the voters. Some residents voiced concerns it would shift the responsibility of PFAS clean up onto those affected. Local attorney Bob Montgomery centered his “Against” argument in the voters’ guide around the idea that the measure asks contaminated water users to “foot the bill for a dead-end distraction.”

Montgomery did not return requests for an interview .

Airway Heights city Councilman Hank Bynaker believes critics of the measure are unnecessarily tying it to the contamination. While the measure could lead to things beneficial to clean up efforts, he said the funding to be generated is only a modest amount. It would not be enough to fund any clean up efforts.

Bynaker said the aquifer protection area is about the bigger picture, a sustainable future for West Plains residents. The area continues to grow and be developed, which means more infrastructure and potential for negative effects to the aquifers, whether it’s contamination or a slower recharge rate.

“We just need to get this APA in place so we can protect what we have now, tomorrow and for future generations,” Bynaker said.