Bellevue councilmembers are examining a number of ways to resolve a $6.5 million budget deficit.
The council Monday reviewed a lengthy list of spending cuts totaling $4.6 million, including the elimination of 17 full-time equivalent positions, six of which would involve layoffs, voluntary separations or voluntary retirements. The proposed reductions come on top of those made last year when the city reduced its workforce by 49 positions and cut $16 million from the budget.
The council is expected to decide in the coming weeks on spending cuts and possible fee increases as part of mid-biennium budget update, which includes the 2011-2012 general fund budget, passed in December 2010.
Budget writers have again designed the cuts to minimize direct impacts to the public.
In addition to reductions, the council is considering whether to implement an emergency medical services fee for transporting “basic life support” patients to hospitals. The recommendation is for a transport fee of $600, plus $14 per mile, for patients with less serious ailments, comparable to other cities and fire departments in King County. The new fees would generate an estimated $1 million in additional revenue annually for the city’s general fund, but councilmembers have raised several questions about the proposal and have expressed concern about possible impacts.
Also being considered are increases in fees charged by the city’s Development Services Department, which has been hit hard by the recession. In response, 26 positions were eliminated last year and 15 more will be cut in 2012. Development Services depends primarily on user fees, not the general fund, to pay for its operations, and the fee increases would help pay for its core services. If approved, it would be the first fee adjustment since 2009.
Councilmembers are scheduled to take action at its meeting on Dec. 5 or Dec. 12, when they vote on several ordinances related to the budget, including a 2012 property tax amount, the Development Services fees, basic life support transport fees, and the mid-biennium budget.
