The Bellevue City Council approved the 2019-2020 biennial budget at a meeting on Dec. 3.

After several meetings discussing the finer points of the budget, the council approved the $1.7 billion budget. That includes $1.1 billion in the operating budget, $72 million in special purpose expenditures, and $534 million for the 2019-2020 section of a seven-year general and utilities capital investment program.

Before the budget was approved, the council also approved several ordinances that play into the 2019-2020 budget. Included in the ordinances was a 1-percent property tax increase. State law limits cities to taking a 1-percent property tax increase each year. Cities have the option to bank that 1 percent to be taken at a later time, but the Bellevue council chose to not pursue that option.

The tax increase for a home with an assessed value of $931,000 is expected to cost $592 per year. The council approved the levy increase of 1 percent to help meet funding goals of the budget in 2019.

Ordinances for human services funding recommendations for 2019-2020, community development block grant funding, a fire inspection fee for 2020, and development services fee updates also were approved.

The council members were supportive of the budget, calling out highlights they were happy to have included. Councilmember Jared Nieuwenhuis specifically mentioned public safety as one of the city’s top priorities and noted it was something the budget is investing in by hiring police and firefighters as well as including funds for the purchase of equipment and the development of Fire Station 10.

Nieuwenhuis also noted, along with several other councilmembers, that the city does expect expenditures to exceed revenues by 2021 and he said there is still work to be done to develop a plan to address the rising expenditures in the next biennium.

He also highlighted the budget’s increase of funding to human services and its focus on transportation projects. Councilmember Jennifer Robertson also called the budget compassionate and cited the human services funding, the approval of the human services commission’s community development block grants, and the affordable housing fund of $11 million over the course of 2019-2020.

Other budget highlights in the staff report include increased police patrol time and increasing the number of fire inspectors, addressing investment necessary for the Grand Connection project, affordable housing, Bellevue College connector, smart city planning, and environmental stewardship.

The budget was approved with a unanimous vote.

More information can be found on the city’s budget page at www.bellevuewa.gov/budgets. The video archive of the whole meeting is available on the city’s website.