City, county and school district leaders got together for a rare joint meeting Wednesday and left with a general message: Residents may want to keep their voting pencils sharpened.

A November sales tax election to fund a nearly $28 million police headquarters may be just the starting point for local tax elections. An election to fund a multimillion dollar expansion of the Douglas County Jail is a possibility, and a unique school district election — conducted by mail-in ballot — is likely to be held in January or February to secure about $2 million worth of funding for the district.

“There are so many projects the community is being asked to do right now, and we want the public to understand that there are other projects that are coming after that,” said Douglas County Administrator Craig Weinaug. “We don’t want to be in competition with these other projects, but we want people to know the discussion is coming.”

In terms of the jail project, community leaders were told Wednesday that the county already is spending about $250,000 a year to house inmates in other county jails. The jail’s inmate population is expected to grow about 7 percent per year, so those costs are almost certain to increase, Weinaug said. The inmate population increases are coming despite efforts to keep people out of jail. Leaders were told Douglas County has the lowest per capita inmate population of any county in the state.

A preliminary report by Lawrence-based Treanor Architects estimated the 196-bed jail may need to be expanded by about 140 beds, with 70 of them devoted to inmates in need of mental health treatment. Cost estimates for the expansion haven’t yet been developed. Sheriff Ken McGovern said much of the cost and size of the expansion will be dependent on how innovative the community decides to be in providing mental health treatment to inmates.

Weinaug said a big decision also will have to be made by county commissioners on whether to put the jail issue to a countywide vote. Weinaug said he believes the county would have the necessary budget authority to proceed without a countywide vote, but said commissioners may want to put the issue to the voters regardless. Weinaug said his research has indicated a new sales tax initiative won’t be an option to fund a jail, unless the state legislature grants the county permission to create a special sales tax. Absent that, property taxes are the most likely funding source for the project.

Weinaug estimates the county will need the jail expansion in about three years, but he estimates it may take two years to build consensus and do the necessary research and design of a facility. He said the commission may seek to hire an architect in a matter of weeks.

Lawrence public school district officials also are nearing a major funding issue. Superintendent Rick Doll said the district is preparing to conduct its first-ever mail ballot election, likely sometime in January or February. The election is necessary under a new state law that requires an election if districts want to set their local option budgets at a 33 percent rate rather than a 31 percent rate. The law dictates that the election be held by mail ballot.

“It is going to be about a $100,000 bill for us to do the mail election, but that is what is called for in the legislation,” Doll said.

At stake is about $1.5 million to $2 million in funding for the district’s 2015-2016 school year. The school board recently finalized the budget for the 2014-2015 school year. It includes the 33 percent local option budget. State lawmakers gave school boards the discretion to set the local option budget without a district-wide vote this year, but will require a public vote next year.

Doll said he is confident the 33 percent local option budget rate won’t push tax bills higher than they are this year, although specific figures won’t be available until closer to the election. Instead, Doll said, voters will have to decide whether they want to cut the amount of taxes they pay to the school district.

“If we lose $2 million in funding, that will be tough,” Doll said. “There would have to be some cuts.”

Doll said board members have directed him to start conducting an extensive education campaign on the issue because there is concern that the issue may create confusion with voters.

Voters will get their first chance in the ballot box on Nov. 4, when Lawrence residents go to the polls to consider a 0.2 percent sales tax increase that would fund the police headquarters. The tax is projected to stay on the books for nine years in order to pay for the new headquarters.

City commissioners, county commissioners and school board members agreed to hold another joint meeting shortly after voters go to the polls in November. The group will meet Nov. 10 to discuss other issues that the governing bodies may need to work together on.