Questions Get To Fine Print Of Merger

Here are some questions and answers regarding the proposed city-county consolidation:

Q. Will the combination of the two governments be called a municipality?

A. It could impose taxes used by cities, including the utility tax, which counties cannot impose.

But state law is not clear about the proposed government’s status for receiving state money, said Spokane city finance Director Pete Fortin.

When the state calculates disbursements from the gas tax, it gives more money for each person living in unincorporated areas than it does for people living in cities. So, if the city disappeared, Spokane’s share of the gas tax would climb.

Other counties likely would complain about Spokane cutting into their share of the money.

But if the new government is considered a city of nearly 400,000 people, it could get more money from the state liquor tax and vehicle excise tax. Other cities probably would complain that much of the county actually is rural, not urban, and therefore not eligible for a big jump in these taxes.

Fortin said the Legislature would have to settle the matter, possibly by telling Spokane to designate an urban boundary considered “city” for the purposes of state allocations, Fortin said.

Q. What happens to city and county retirees, who are on different pension systems? What happens to current workers who are on different pension systems now, and retire later?

A. Government can’t get off the hook for paying benefits. But that’s about all that’s certain because the charter doesn’t address the issue.

County employees are covered by two retirement systems run by the state. Public Employees Retirement System I stopped accepting enrollees in 1977. Its replacement, PERS II, is not as generous as the original.

The Spokane Employees’ Retirement System, which covers city workers, is similar to PERS I.

In a report to freeholders, James Bennett, city retirement director, recommended the new government keep all three systems. New employees would have their choice of the three, but probably would pick the city system.

“This option would not result in new costs to the new city-county,” he wrote.

Capping membership in the city retirement system could be expensive, Bennett said, because enrollees help pay the benefits of people who already have retired. The city would have to make up the difference.

Q. Will the merger of Spokane city and county governments be similar to the mergers in Anchorage and Indianapolis?

A. Nationwide, 28 communities have consolidated city-county governments.

Anchorage-Greater Anchorage Borough joined the list in 1975. Indianapolis-Marion County consolidated in 1969.

There are no consolidated governments in Washington or Idaho, but two in Montana: Anaconda-Deer Lodge County and Butte-Silver Bow County. Both mergers were passed by voters in 1976.

Voters in Portland rejected consolidation with Multnomah County in 1974.

Augusta-Richmond County, Ga., will be the 29th consolidated community. Residents there voted in July to consolidate the two governments, but that merger is not yet official.

, DataTimes