Medical Lake joins the party, gets rolling on its 2015 budget

The city of Medical Lake began preparing for its 2015 budget at the Nov. 4 City Council meeting.

The council held a public hearing for the current expense and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) revenue sources for the 2015 current expense budget and the possible increase in regular property taxes.

Following the public hearing, the council voted 6-1 to approve the first reading of an ordinance that increases the property tax rate and the EMS levy rate by 1 percent for 2015. Councilman A.J. Burton was the dissenting vote. Burton said he approved of the EMS levy rate but not the property tax increase. Councilwoman Laura Parsons was absent from the meeting.

City Administrator Doug Ross explained that the ordinance increases the property tax rate by 1 percent. The city expects to collect approximately $6,000 in revenue into the general fund for an estimated yearly total of $526,812. In 2014, the city collected $521,597 in property taxes.

“If you’re property is assessed at $100,000 it would amount for a $2.24 tax increase,” Ross said.

The city’s estimated assessed valuation for 2015 is $233,364,611.

The EMS levy rate is set at 50 cents per $1,000 assessed value and the anticipated amount collected from the levy for 2015 will be $116,683.31. The 1 percent increase will bring the city’s total EMS levy revenue to an approximate total of $117,849.13.

The county assessor has yet to receive the state’s updated valuations and the numbers could change. Ways the city’s assessed value could change is if there is new construction or the past taxes are collected.

“If our town is reassessed and values change, then you may not see an increase,” Ross said.

The council also set public hearings for the 2015 preliminary budget, Nov. 18, and the final budget, Dec. 2 at 6:30 p.m.

In other business:

• Councilman Art Kulibert said there were 51 incidents for October, with 38 being EMS in nature.

• Mayor John Higgins announced that he and other mayors will go a meeting in Olympia to get a “bigger voice for the cities.”

• The city’s compost trailer will close Nov. 17 or the first snowfall.

• The City Council had a 10-minute executive session. The council took no action after the executive session.

Al Stover can be reached at [email protected].