School district, hospital district host Town Hall

NEWPORT — A Town Hall event at the Pend Oreille Public Utility District was split between presentations from Newport Hospital and Health Services and the Newport School District, with approximately 45 people attending Saturday, Jan. 24.

Up first were NHHS Chief Financial Officer Justin Peters and Senior Director of Strategy Jenny Smith, providing an overview of the hospital district.

“So, who owns the hospital district? You do,” Smith said, adding that Newport residents created the hospital district in 1954. “Our goal is to keep healthcare in the community, so people do not have to travel out of the area to get the care they need.”

Currently, NHHS has 449 employees, with 25 providers at the clinic that received 35,000 visits in 2025. Operating expenses for the district totaled $65 million with a total annual payroll of $33.4 million.

Peters said some of the challenges NHHS faces is Medicaid cuts, which could potentially leave many area residents uninsured. Staffing for behavioral health in the emergency room and recruiting OB nurses has also remained difficult.

“Our pay and benefits are good, but it can be difficult to attract healthcare professionals to work in a rural area because they can make more money in a more urban setting,” Peters said. Residents at NHHS assisted living and advanced care are below capacity, with only 19 out of 41 spaces filled in assisted living and 60 out of 72 at advanced care. Charity care has also risen in the last four years from just over 1,000 in 2022 to 5,000 in 2025.

Representatives from NSD, including superintendent Dave Smith, financial manager Debra Buttrey, school board member April Owen and facilities manager Scott Armstrong attended to talk about the upcoming bond and levy voters will be deciding on Tuesday, Feb. 10.

The district is proposing the bond at an estimated rate of $1.89 per $1,000 in assessed property value for up to 23 years. It requires a supermajority approval of at least 60% to pass, with the state expected to contribute an additional $17.7 million upon approval.

Estimated at a rate of $1.45 per $1,000 in assessed property value, Newport’s Educational Programs and Operations levy will collect a total amount of $8.8 million over the next three years if passed. The current levy is in the final year of a three-year $6.7 million EPO levy, whose rate was estimated at $1.50 per $1,000.

When asked, Buttrey said levy and bond comparisons to Mead and Deer Park School Districts showed Mead pays $3.69 per $1,000, which equals $2.50 for their levy and $1.19 for the bond. Deer Park pays an EPO levy for $1.55 per $1,000 and a bond of $1.03 per $1,000, equaling $2.58 per $1,000.

SOPHIA MATTICE-ALDOUS IS A MURROW NEWS FELLOW WORKING DIRECTLY WITH NEWSROOMS AT THE NEWPORT MINER AND RANGE MEDIA THROUGH A PROGRAM ADMINISTERED BY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY. HER REPORTING IS AVAILABLE FOR USE VIA CREATIVE COMMONS WITH CREDIT.