By Kevin Hanson-The Courier-Herald

It's budget-building time at Enumclaw City Hall.

Every fall, as the daylight hours grow shorter and evenings get colder, city officials work through the process of hammering out a tentative spending plan for the year to come. Department heads put in their requests, information is compiled by City Administrator Mark Bauer and, eventually, a preliminary document is passed out by Mayor John Wise.

But the mayor's request is just that – a request. The final say belongs to the seven members of the Enumclaw City Council and, before they adopt a formal 2007 municipal budget, citizens will have plenty of opportunities to make their feelings known. A series of budget workshops and two public hearings, open to the public, will allow for individual testimony regarding spending plans.

&#8220Overall, the city is in good financial shape,” Wise wrote in his proposed budget. During a brief interview in his City Hall office, Wise added there will be no need to reduce city services during 2007 or trim from the roster of city employees.

But the overall fiscal health of city government doesn't come without some sacrifice by residents.

The mayor's budget includes a 1 percent property tax increase (the maximum allowed by law) and also calls for collecting the final bit of &#8220banked” taxing capacity. In years when cities collected less than the authorized limit, they were allowed to hold onto the unused taxing authority for use at a later date.

The city used much of its banked capacity a year ago and, this year, Wise is recommending the city collect the final $28,000 - on top of the 1 percent increase.

Even with those dollars coming in, the city will fall short, Wise estimates. To make ends meet, $74,000 will have to be pulled from a reserve account to support city operations, Wise said, and another $343,000 will be needed to pay for capital requests.

Wise defends dipping into reserves with his belief the city will soon be replenishing that account due to growth.

&#8220When new growth is factored in beginning in 2010, by estimating 100 new residential lot developments and some minor commercial development, the downward trend is reversed,” Wise wrote.

That optimism is based on a belief that growth will occur as soon as the city's wastewater treatment plant is upgraded. The city has, for years, had a moratorium on adding new utility connections, a situation that won't be reversed until plant improvements are completed.

&#8220There's a lot of interest now that the wastewater treatment plant is getting close to construction,” Wise said.

Aside from a property tax increase, local residents will support city functions by paying higher rates on their utility bills. The water rate will climb 6.5 percent with the coming of the new year and the sewer rate will jump 27 percent, increases that were authorized by the council in 2006. The solid waste utility is expected to jump 5 percent.

Natural gas, which has skyrocketed in recent years, is the only utility not ticketed for a rate increase during 2007.

The total 2007 city budget, as proposed by the mayor, sits at $55.7 million, an increase of $9.2 million over the 2006 budget. The jump, Wise said, is largely due to treatment plant costs.

The general fund, which supports basic city services, climbs to almost $9.3 million in the mayor's plan, an increase of $620,000. The increased costs, Wise wrote, are primarily due to increases in payroll and employee benefits, principally health care and pension benefits.

Kevin Hanson can be reached at khanson@courierherald.com.

€ The City Council will be reviewing portions of the proposed 2007 budget during during a series of budget workshops. The first is tonight, Wednesday; future workshops are planned for Nov. 2, 9, 16 and 20, all beginning at 7 p.m.

€ The council will host a public hearing on the 2007 property tax levy at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 13.

€ Public hearings on both the tax levy and 2007 budget begin at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 27.

€ A second public hearing on the budget is planned for 7:30 p.m. Dec. 11. It's anticipated the council will adopt a 2007 budget at that meeting.

€ All meetings are in City Hall council chambers and all are open to the public. All will be shown live on ECTV, channel 21 in Enumclaw.