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Longview manager presents 2025–26 budget with 1¢ tax increase, proposed 6% raises and new fees
Summary
City staff presented a proposed 2025–26 budget that would raise the property tax rate by one cent, fund a 6% across-the-board pay increase plus a $1,000 flat adjustment for employees, and adopt multiple fee changes including credit-card pass-throughs, higher permit fees and a new fire department “lift-assist” charge.
City staff presented a proposed 2025–26 budget on July 24 that would raise the city’s property tax rate by one cent and fund a 6% across‑the‑board pay increase plus a $1,000 flat adjustment for employees while also proposing several fee changes intended to shrink the gap between service costs and revenues.
The proposal was described by city staff as a package that would keep the overall proposed tax rate below a previously voter‑approved benchmark and avoid larger increases staff had projected earlier. “We can fund the budget as proposed with a property tax increase of only 1¢ per 100,” City staff member McPhee told the council, adding that the increase would cost the owner of an average home “$22.33 a year or a dollar 86 per month.”
City staff said the raise plan is designed to improve pay for lower‑paid employees while remaining sustainable under current property valuations. McPhee cautioned the…
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