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Monday, March 18, 2024
March 18, 2024

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La Center council adopts smallest operating budget since 2007

By , Columbian Small Cities Reporter
Published:

The city of La Center wrapped up a long and contentious budgeting process this week, preparing to head into next year with its smallest operating plan since 2007.

The La Center City Council adopted a new spending plan with a 4-1 vote Thursday night, approving a $3.6 million general fund for 2015. Seven years ago, the city had an operating budget of $3.5 million, and it’s hovered around $4 million in most years since.

Councilor Al Luiz, who cast the sole vote against the new budget, could not be reached for comment. Initially, the councilors planned to approve a $3.7 million for next year, but instead they decided to cut another $145,000 out largely by eliminating a vacant police patrol position and making incremental expense cuts for training, fuel and community events.

Mayor Jim Irish explained the reductions in a memo to the council on Wednesday. The overall impact of the reductions also means the city will not have to use as much of its general fund reserves as expected, Irish wrote.

This summer, the council learned it was facing a significant deficit after a small cardroom went out of business. In August, Finance Director Suzanne Levis projected a shortfall of more than $400,000 for 2014, but as the year draws to a close, that deficit appears to be closer to $250,000, she said.

Revenue from the La Center’s 10 percent tax on gross receipts at cardrooms typically makes up about 75 percent of the city’s budget. City leaders are bracing for major structural shifts in the coming years with the Cowlitz Tribe planning to build a 134,000-square-foot casino just west of Interstate 5.

Last week, a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by opponents of the tribe’s effort to take a 152-acre site into trust to establish a new reservation. Though the decision will likely be appealed, tribal leaders celebrated the development as a milestone in the long-running dispute.

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Columbian Small Cities Reporter