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Council rejects $82,000 appropriation to cover Local 25 benefit shortfall amid budgeting disputes
Summary
An appropriation of $82,000 to cover additional costs for Local 25 benefits failed 5–6 after debate over misallocated payroll accounts and repeated annual budget shortfalls; councilors demanded better budgeting and oversight before approving future transfers.
The Everett City Council voted 5–6 to deny an $82,000 transfer from free cash to the Human Resources Local 25 benefits account after councilors questioned budgeting processes and discovered the account had already been heavily spent.
The order, offered by Council President Stephanie Martins, sought to appropriate $82,000 from the general fund free cash to cover additional costs related to three Local 25 units. Councilors questioned why the item was not budgeted in fiscal 2024 or 2025 and pressed administration officials for details.
Mary Rusolillo, appearing for the administration, said the expense was not budgeted in FY24 or FY25 and that the city had relied on operational funding and transfers in previous years. She told the council that, if no new enrollments occurred, the amount currently needed would be $3,864.92 but that a cushion was prudent because open enrollment could add members.
Councilors challenged the administration’s budgeting. Councilor Smith said the account had spent roughly 90 percent of its budget early in the fiscal year — "we already spent $133,000 of $148,000" — and criticized recurring bookkeeping and payroll issues that shifted funds from withholding accounts. Several councilors said they had seen persistent underbudgeting and frequent last‑minute requests to cover shortfalls.
After discussion and public questioning, the council called the roll. The clerk recorded five yea votes and six nays; the appropriation failed.
Councilors urged administrative fixes, more accurate budget forecasting for FY26, and clearer accounting of benefits, dental and legal line items that had been paid from the wrong accounts. The administration said it would address the process problems and improve internal communication and control of payroll and account coding going forward.
