Medical Lake seeks equity

What recourse does a municipality have when it feels the state owes it more money for providing a state agency police and fire services?

That’s the challenge the city of Medical Lake has struggled with since 2014, when officials realized the city of Lakewood was being compensated by the state at a far higher rate for providing police services for Western State Hospital, according to Medical Lake City Administrator Doug Ross.

State officials have essentially thumbed their noses at the small, cash-strapped rural city, citing a lack of funding, according to Mayor Shirley Maike, herself a retired...