Lake Stevens waives $2,881 interest penalty for Razzles Northwest after council debate over notice and process

The Lake Stevens City Council voted to waive an interest penalty of approximately $2,881 for Razzles Northwest after the business paid taxes that had been outstanding during a three-year review period.

Matthew Heist, the city’s finance manager, told council the company had paid its tax principal and asked the council to waive the accrued interest. Heist explained staff had sent forms and notices based on records from the state gambling commission but that ownership changes and address updates meant some mailings were directed to previous owners and did not reach the current operator.

Council discussion centered on two themes: fairness to a local business that said it was unaware it owed city gambling tax and the risk of creating an open-ended precedent for waiving interest when businesses claim lack of notice. Councilmember Peter Shagan and others urged improved internal processes for tracking a small set of gambling-license businesses; Councilmember Ryan (surname not specified in the record) and others said the legal responsibility for taxes rests with business owners.

After debate and several requests for written process improvements from finance, a motion to waive the interest penalty for Razzles Northwest was made and the council approved the waiver. The meeting transcript does not record a roll-call vote with named votes; the mayor recorded the motion as approved. Council asked finance staff to update procedures to prevent similar notification lapses going forward and to report back on process improvements.