Local

Seattle voters approving $600 million education levy

Photo by Marc Serota, Getty Images

SEATTLE — In early election results, voters in Seattle have largely approved a $600 million education levy.

The levy, leading 69 percent to 31 percent on Tuesday night, covers multiple education programs in the city, including subsidized preschool.

The subsidized preschool program was approved as a four-year, $58 million pilot, in 2014, with a goal of eventually getting every kid in the city — regardless of income level — access to early learning.

The city wants to extend and expand the program to more than double the number of kids to 2,500 by 2026.

Seattle Superintendent Denise Juneau thanked voters Tuesday night:

Thank you to the voters of Seattle for passing the City's Families, Education, Preschools and Promise Levy! Your support of the City's levy will help Seattle Public Schools continue to provide the best education possible for all students. I look forward to our continued partnership with the City as we work to increase student achievement, collaborate with our families, and move SPS to new heights."

The current levy that pays for the preschool program expires at the end of the year, as does the Families Education levy, which pays for K-12 programs like family support and after-school programs, as well as school-based health centers.

Prop. 1 combines those two expiring levies, and also includes money to launch the mayor’s college promise program, covering two years of community college, or the equivalent for all Seattle graduates.

More news from KIRO 7

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE NEWS APP