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Edgewood council discusses reinstating $20 vehicle fee to shore up street fund
Summary
Finance staff recommended reimposing a $20 vehicle (car-tab) fee to bolster the city—s Street Fund. Council members raised questions about timing, exemptions, outreach and reliance on volatile REET revenue; no vote was taken and the item was placed on next week—s regular meeting agenda.
Edgewood Finance Director Hardeep Gariah on Tuesday presented a proposal to reinstate a $20 vehicle fee — commonly called a car-tab or transportation benefit charge — to restore revenue the city stopped collecting in 2020.
The fee would be collected by the Washington State Department of Licensing after the council gives notice; Gariah said the agency needs about six to eight months to implement collection. Based on historical collections, staff estimated the city could collect about $250,000 in calendar 2026 if the council approves the fee this spring.
The proposal stems from an ongoing shortfall in the Street Fund. Gariah told the council that fuel-tax receipts average about $250,000 a year and that the city has been supplementing road maintenance with transfers from the General Fund and real estate excise tax (REET). He said Street Fund expenditures rose to roughly $1.2 million in 2022 and about $1.3 million in 2023 and that returning the vehicle fee would ease but not eliminate the subsidy need.
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