Mason County News

[VIDEO] Mason County released information on the Public Safety Sales Tax Proposition voters will find on the August 6th Primary Election Ballot. If approved by voters, the proposition would increase the sales tax in unincorporated Mason County by three-tenths (0.3%) of a percent and increase the sales tax in the City of Shelton two-tenths of percent (0.2%). The County’s sales tax rate would go from 8.5 percent to 8.8 percent. The City’s sales tax rate would increase from 8.8 percent to 9 percent.

[LIVE VIDEO] Watch the July 16, 2019 Shelton City Council meeting. There are two ways to watch the council meeting live at 6 PM: hcc.net/news and MasonWebTV.com. You can also watch on demand on hcc.net/news or MasonWebTV.com. Rebroadcasts on Hood Canal Communications’ local channel are Thursday at 3 PM and Saturday at 9 AM.

Click here for the meetings agenda.

[LIVE VIDEO] Watch the July 16, 2019 Mason County Commission meeting. There are three ways to watch live at 9 AM: hcc.net/news, MasonWebTV.com r Mason County’s website (co.mason.wa.us.) You can also watch on demand on hcc.net/news, MasonWebTV.com or Mason County’s website: co.mason.wa.us. Rebroadcasts on Hood Canal Communications’ local channel are Thursday at 6 PM, Saturday at 2 PM and Sunday at 9 AM.

Here is the meeting’s agenda:

Mason County government has never been the poster child for transparency, but what happened to one rural community should be a wake-up call for us all (see “County road project stumbles” MCJ July 11^th.)

The Shelton City Council will consider a resolution supporting Mason County’s proposed Public Safety Sales Tax during their meeting at 6 PM Tuesday, July 16. MasonWebTV Powered by HCC will broadcast Tuesday’s City Council meeting live.

If approved by voters on August 6, 2019, the Public Safety Sales and Use tax would increase to three-tenths of 1%. A City news release says because Shelton residents approved a ballot measure in 2011 to collect a one-tenth of 1% sales tax dedicated to public safety, approval of the county ballot proposition would raise the tax by two-tenths of a percentage to a total of three-tenths of 1% within Shelton city limits.

Hood Canal Communications will be implementing system upgrades that will affect services in the City of Shelton on July 17th and 18th. Customers may find service disruptions between 1 AM and 4 AM both days.

HCC Fiber customers will not be affected.

Friday, Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06) voted to pass H.R. 1327, the “Never Forget the Heroes: James Zadroga, Ray Pfeifer, and Luis Alverez Permanent Authorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund Act,” which takes long-overdue action to provide the financial security and support that 9/11 first responders, survivors and families deserve.

The Washington State Patrol (WSP) is imploring drivers to fasten their seatbelts before hitting the roads this summer in light of multiple serious injury and one fatality collision in District 8.

The following is a summary of road construction and maintenance scheduled on state highways around Mason County and adjacent areas from July 14, 2019 to July 20, 2019.

Construction

US 101 – Coffee Creek – Remove Fish Barrier
Highway: US 101 Region: Olympic  County: Mason Location: Milepost(s) 346.8
Description: Travelers who use the US 101 Shelton-Matlock interchange will notice orange signs and construction activities beginning Monday, July 15. Crews will begin efforts to remove fish barriers along Coffee Creek and rebuild two ramps at the US 101/Shelton-Matlock Road interchange. While the initial work will have little effect on travelers, drivers are encouraged to watch for trucks entering and exiting the construction zone.  As work progresses, the project later will require a temporary traffic shift on Shelton-Matlock Road west of US 101 near the interchange. This project also will rebuild the southbound US 101 ramps to and from the Shelton-Matlock Road. 
Work Schedule: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. each Monday through Thursday.

Maintenance

The Washington State Department of Health, through it’s Health Systems Quality Assurance Division, has taken disciplinary action against a local health care provider and withdrawn charges against another.