YAKIMA, Wash. -- As promised, Yakima City Council took no position after hearing Tim Eyman outline his latest tax-cutting measure Tuesday evening.

In fact, council members hardly said a word during his presentation.

That was in sharp contrast to Yakima County commis-sioners, who expressed deep reservations after hearing Eyman outline his Initiative 1033 earlier in the day.

Commissioner Mike Leita called it a "simplistic approach" to limit revenues without considering rising expenses that local governments can't control.

Commissioner Rand Elliott said the initiative penalized local governments for the state's reckless spending.

While Yakima County has been conservative in its spending, it would bear the greatest brunt from I-1033, he said.

The measure, which goes before voters in November, pegs increases in tax revenues to the rate of inflation plus population growth.

He said I-1033 is basically an improved version of I-601, which he said has been mostly gutted by lawmakers in recent years.

Commissioners said capping revenue growth to inflation and population growth would likely mean cuts in services. Because of sagging sales tax revenues, Yakima County already faces a potential budget deficit of more than $3 million.

Commissioners warn they might have to cut law enforcement, courts and other law and justice and public safety programs, which account for 80 percent of the county's general fund.

Yakima County would have lost nearly $15 million had the measure been in effect since 2002, according to commissioners.

Eyman responded the projection assumes commissioners wouldn't have changed anything during those years.

"The idea is to change behavior," he said.

But commissioners remain skeptical, urging voters to be well-informed.

In other action Tuesday, the City Council adopted an ethics code.

The new code, an offshoot of the open-meetings controversy that rocked City Hall earlier this year, lays out a total of eight do's and don'ts. Violating the state open-meetings law is not one of them.

In a move that could be unique in the state, the council wants to screen ethics complaints in executive session. Penalties for substantiated complaints range from reprimands to possible criminal charges.

"Knowingly false" or harassing complaints could be subject to criminal prosecution.

The vote for adoption of the code was 7-0.