City to hold public hearings on revenue, property tax and Initiative 976

The city of Blaine will hold two public hearings at the next city council meeting, scheduled for Monday, October 28 at 6 p.m.

The first public hearing will focus on 2020 revenue estimates and a proposed one percent increase in property tax revenue. The second public hearing will focus on a proposed city resolution opposing Initiative 976.

The hearings will take place in the city council chambers at Blaine City Hall, 435 Martin Street, suite 4000. During the hearings, members of the public will be invited to offer their comments on the topics under discussion.

During the first hearing, city finance director Jeff Lazenby will deliver a presentation detailing the city of Blaine’s proposed revenue estimates for 2020. It will then be up to city council to approve the estimates through the adoption of the 2020 budget. Public hearings on the final 2020 budget are scheduled to take place on Tuesday, November 12 and Monday, November 25, and the adoption of the budget is slated to take place during the first council meeting in December.

The hearing will also address property taxes. On an annual basis, taxing jurisdictions can increase their collection of property tax revenue by one percent. City council will not take any action at the October 28 meeting, but is expected to vote on approving the one percent increase at the November 12 meeting.

The second public hearing will focus on a proposed city resolution opposing Initiative 976.

Initiative 976 would limit motor vehicle license fees (car tab fees) to $30 per year; repeal or reduce certain motor vehicle weight fees; repeal the authority for city transportation benefit districts (TBDs) to impose vehicle fees; reduce electric vehicle fees to $30 per year; and repeal the 0.3 percent tax on motor vehicle retail sales, among other things.

According to Blaine city manager Michael Jones, the ballot measure could make it harder for Blaine to receive state transportation funding in the future. “It could have a significant impact on the state’s general collection of transportation funding, to the tune of billions of dollars over time,” said Jones. “Some of that goes towards projects that help local and regional transportation.”

As an example, Jones mentioned the Bell Road grade separation project, which will alleviate traffic delays caused by the Department of Homeland Security’s train inspection facility just south of city limits. The project would construct an overpass over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) mainline.

“That’s the kind of project that it would be more difficult to get funding for,” said Jones. “When the pool of money gets dramatically smaller, it becomes more difficult to get funding for any project.”