The city of Burien may ask voters to approve a six-year property tax levy lid lift this year to maintain public safety and other local service levels.

If placed on the ballot and approved, the tax rate would increase.

"The city cannot maintain existing services with its current revenues," said Linda Gorton, finance director, during a June 5 presentation of the 2007-2012 Financial Plan and Capital Improvement Program.

Public safety accounts for 54 percent of total general fund expenditures, she explained.

"Public safety is growing at 5.6 percent per year and property tax is only growing at 1 percent per year, and property taxes are the second-largest revenue source that we have in the general fund."

Property taxes account for 28 percent of general fund revenues, and the sales tax for 35 percent.

The current forecast only includes services currently provided, not services that would be added if the Burien were to annex North Highline.

Gorton noted if the city were to rely on sales tax revenues to maintain existing services, they would need to grow at approximately 7 percent annually. Currently, local sales tax revenue is predicted to grow at 2.5 percent, said Gorton.

Councilman Gordon Shaw observed that city investment in economic development, such as Town Square and a planned hotel, could "change the picture on the revenue side of tax."

But Gorton said because there is a property tax abatement for Town Square residential units, no property taxes will be collected for 10 years except on retail and land value.

For sales that may occur in Town Square, city staff has assumed that revenue will go to pay off some of the debt service.

"On the hotel, I've not made any assumptions. The property's not sold yet ... I like to wait until the city has revenue in hand so we know what we're forecasting from," Gorton added.

Shaw said he appreciates staff's position, but thinks the economic formula of the city could change significantly in the next couple of years.

"We've got to figure out some way of analyzing that. I would be reluctant to go to the voters with the six-year program when we really don't know what the base is going to be two years from now," he added.

Mayor Joan McGilton said she is concerned that sales tax receipts will go down because the city faces a year-and-a-half of construction along First Avenue South.

"Because 30 percent of our sales tax comes from the car dealers, I really am concerned if they start losing revenue because of the impact of construction. What's that going to do to our budget because that is such a long-term project?" she wondered.

Gorton said the business and occupancy tax would not be sufficient to meet the projected shortfall, and gambling taxes could only be collected at card rooms.

"We have 11 percent taxes on the card room we have; by state law it can be 20 percent. (However), it's not clear that the card room can sustain an increase in that tax and previous councils have chosen not to go there."

Therefore, she concluded, city staff recommends a levy lid lift because the property tax is the most stable revenue source.

"My concern is that the most important thing we do as a city is provide for public safety and in order to do that we need to have a steady revenue source," said Deputy Mayor Jack Block Jr.

"I don't feel comfortable trusting something as important as public safety to volatile revenue sources. The property taxes are the most stable source of revenue. I don't want to be in the situation where we are faced in the middle of a budget cycle of having to cut services."

Block added, "There isn't a whole lot to cut here. (The city) is running bare bones."

McGilton emphasized that the reason the city is proposing a levy lid lift is because it has lost federal and state funding over the year.

"We're now at the point of having to rely on local funding for any amount of service we're providing. It's important for the citizens to know that there is no place to go for city services but the city."

The council is expected to decide soon whether to the voters for a levy lid lift in the Sept. 19 primary election or the Nov. 7 general election.

Councilwoman Sue Blazak, Councilwoman Sally Nelson and Shaw agreed that the city should wait until the general election to give voters more time and because more voters will go to the polls then.

If the levy lid lift is placed on the ballot, it would include only existing services and not assume annexation of the North Highline area.

The council will receive public comments on the proposed 2007-2012 Financial Plan and Capital Improvement Program at a public hearing during its regular meeting June 19.

Des Moines voters approved a property tax levy lid lift for police services in that city last month, and the SeaTac City Council placed a levy lid lift for new fire stations on the Sept. 19 ballot.