Post Falls Approves New Budget Council Makes More Cuts; Final Product Praised, Criticized

City officials bristled when a citizen told them it was “inconceivable” they could be proud of the budget they were poised to approve Tuesday night.

Since the last public hearing, the city had found a way to cut another $55,000 from the taxpayer’s share of the budget.

And two council members were proposing another 1.5 percent cut in nearly all department budgets.

Before the vote, the proposed general budget was $5,104,812 - a $41,377 increase over last year’s.

“I do think there are some things to brag about,” said councilman Joe Doellefeld, after being lectured by resident Don Morgan on the dubious morality of spending tax dollars on city recreational programs and a senior citizens center.

“The city’s role should be much more limited,” Morgan argued.

“We’ve made some pretty significant cuts,” Doellefeld said.

“You’ve kept outrageous taxes outrageous,” Morgan countered before returning to his seat in the audience of about 40.

“I tell you, we have scraped these things to the bone,” said councilman Gus Johnson. “It’s hard for me to take the criticism.”

After the vote, the council voted to cut the tax-share of the budget another $65,175 - a decrease of almost $24,000 from last year’s budget.

Others praised the council, including tax watchdog Paul Anderson, who attended a previous budget hearing on behalf of Concerned Businesses of North Idaho to press for a flat budget. “You’ve made a substantial effort in that direction,” he said. “Leaner budgets are really where it’s at for the future.”

The proposed budget represents a tax rate of less than $5.35 per $100,000 of assessed property value. That’s a 23 percent decrease from last year’s tax rate. City treasurer Brentt Ramharter said property owners whose tax assessments did not increase more than 26 percent this year will not see a tax increase as a result of the new budget.

Included in the budget were $200,000 for street construction and $200,000 for facility construction.

But council members took another $10,000 from the facility reserve fund to help achieve the additional 1.5 percent cut in the general fund budget.

, DataTimes