Yakima needs to shave $70,000 from budget

YAKIMA, WASH. -- The Yakima City Council meets today to close a $70,000 gap in the city's budget for 2010.

But first it will swear in its newest member, Dave Ettl, the KIT-AM radio host who defeated council appointee Sonia Rodriguez in the Nov. 3 general election.

The ceremony is expected to get under way at 8 a.m., followed immediately by a budget-chipping session in which the council is expected to put the final touches on a proposed 2010 general-fund budget of $59.6 million that is still slightly out of whack.

The City Council has previously solved most of a projected deficit of $4 million through a combination of staff reductions and the use of $1.4 million in reserves.

Most of the 24 staff reductions will come through attrition. Three employees will be laid off, however.

But city officials say the latest revenue projections require further cuts of $70,000. That's down from a $200,000 projection just two weeks ago.

The City Council has no shortage of possible cuts to choose from, including proposals to cut all funding to a number of outside agencies -- mostly small community groups, such as Allied Arts and the Sunfair Parade -- that receive financial assistance from the city.

Other proposed cuts include the elimination of the police department's new crime analyst, a position Councilman Micah Cawley has criticized as excessively compensated at more than $111,000 a year, counting benefits.

Also on the table are proposals to restore funding for certain programs -- such as the fire department's arson dog -- which would require corresponding cutbacks.

The council's leading conservative, Bill Lover, said he still favors total elimination of funding for community groups as a matter of fiscal philosophy.

However, with the shortfall largely covered, he predicted his colleagues will stick to a previous decision to cut most outside agencies by 50 percent -- and no more.

"It's important to treat everyone the same," he said, adding, "If we weren't laying off people, it would be an entirely different observation."

After the budget session ends, the council is expected to reconvene at 6 p.m. for its regularly scheduled bi-weekly business meeting.

Read Sonia Rodriguez's comments on stepping down from the Yakima City Council in the Checks & Balances blog at yakimaherald.com.

* Chris Bristol can be reached at 509-577-7748 or at cbristol@yakimaherald.com.