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Wenatchee officials flag $2 million recurring shortfall; 0.1% public safety sales tax floated
Summary
City finance staff told the Wenatchee City Council the proposed 2026 budget shows a nearly $2 million recurring gap driven by jail, public defender and insurance cost increases; staff recommended considering a one‑tenth of one percent public safety sales tax that could take effect April 1, 2026.
Finance Director Brad Hoskenk told the Wenatchee City Council Tuesday that the city’s preliminary 2026 general fund shows a structural shortfall driven largely by rising jail, public defender and insurance costs.
Brad Hoskenk, finance director for the City of Wenatchee, said the city’s total net income in the proposed budget appears as a $1.2 million deficit on paper but that recurring revenues are short by “almost $2,000,000,” leaving a structural gap once one‑time items are set aside.
The shortfall stems from several recently identified cost increases: a pending increase in the county jail contract that staff estimated could be between $600,000 and $1,000,000 over two years; roughly $400,000 in higher public defender costs tied to state…
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