Committee hears concerns about proposed $9 monthly public safety fee to fund radios, equipment

City staff described a proposed public safety fee intended to stabilize funding for police and fire equipment and radios. Tammy Trowbridge, the city finance director, and Chief Mills explained the fee structure during the budget review: the proposal would be $9 per month per household and is projected to generate roughly $330,000 a year based on the city27s number of meters. "It would be $9 per month per household, which will generate, based on the number of meters we have, about, $330,000 per year," Chief Mills said.

Residents and committee members asked how the fee would be classified and whether it could lead to additional fees over time. One resident asked, "How does that get capped? How do we say enough is enough?" City staff said the fee is proposed as a utility fee (not a tax) and would be subject to annual council review; legal classification and potential ordinance options were discussed but no final action on the fee was taken during the meeting.

The committee heard that the fee is intended in part to pay for countywide radio replacement driven by interoperability requirements (the chief cited a current quoted replacement cost of approximately $220,000 for department radios). Staff emphasized the fee27s reviewability: council would revisit the charge annually and could decrease or discontinue it. Several public commenters asked for clearer public outreach and potential voter input if new recurring charges were to be layered on residents.

No ordinance or final fee approval was adopted during the budget meeting; staff indicated the budget is not presupposed on the fee and council would consider the matter at future meetings.