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Bellevue City Council to vote on 2013-15 budget

Bellevue officials project a $5 million shortfall in the city's budget over the next two years.

Council members will vote Monday night on the city's 2013-15 biennial budget. A public hearing was held last week. The plan calls for eliminating 9 non-sworn positions in the Bellevue Police Department. A system of rolling brownouts would be implemented at Bellevue Fire Stations, with 1 of the 4 stations closed every day.

City Administrator Dan Berlowitz says the original budget plan called for 14 percent reductions across the board, something that, after further study, was determined not to be feasible. Instead, Bellevue taxpayers could pay more over the next two years.

"In order to maintain services at a level that we felt, I guess, was palatable but not ideal, we proposed to the Council that for the coming fiscal year, 13-14, the first year of a two-year budget, a three and a half cent increase in the property tax levy. And for the second year, 14-15, an additional one cent that would take it up to 60 cents."

Councilman Don Preister introduced a 2 and a half cent occupation tax. Preister says it would offset some of the property tax increase. His and other Council members' budget amendments will be considered at Monday's meeting.

The Bellevue City Council meets at 6pm.