While the Centralia City Council had initially voted to pass a 1% property tax increase upon its first reading on Nov. 14, during its Nov. 28 meeting, the council voted on second reading to keep 2024’s property tax rate the same as it was for 2023, but banked its capacity to raise the rate, meaning the council can still raise it next year if needed.
The current property tax levy generated $1,057,398.19 in revenue in 2023.
Nov. 30 is the deadline for municipalities to submit 2024 property tax rates to Lewis County, and now that the rate increase has been banked, it can be brought up for consideration again when the property tax is being examined again next November.
The vote to keep the tax rate the same was 4-2, with Councilors Elizabeth Cameron and Sarah Althauser opposing the ordinance. Councilor Cameron McGee was not present for the vote.
During the Nov. 14 meeting, opposition was raised to increasing the sales tax by Councilor Mark Westley, a former teacher.
Westley feared the original proposed 1% increase could once again endanger the Centralia School District’s levy replacement, which failed twice during special elections this year and is scheduled to be put up for another vote during a February 2024 special election.
“I did reach out to the school district and ask about the ramifications of continued demise of levies,” Westley said. “We’re looking at potentially (a) $4 million-plus (deficit) that again, would have to be somehow dealt with in a budget.”
He repeated the need for the city to support the school district.
Cameron, while she understood the need to support Centralia’s school, said she believes the tax increase is needed, as the city has recently lost lodging tax revenue, and inflation is driving other budget expenditures up every year.
“We have fiscal responsibility to the City of Centralia,” Cameron added.
Councilor Max Vogt was the first to bring up the idea of banking the capacity to raise the rate, and Centralia City Attorney Kyle Manley added that banking it was allowed.
“In a future year, (the council) could pull that authority out and increase taxes in excess of 1%,” Manley said.
Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston, while originally in favor of the 1% increase, said she now opposes it, though she acknowledged the city still needs to generate more budget revenue and supported Vogt’s property tax increase banking proposal.
Vogt added tax increases are never supported or popular decisions, but must be made sometimes.
"Regardless of the school levy outcome, we really need to be thoughtful about our own city's budget," Smith Johnston said.
“There’s never going to be a time when people say, ‘yes, please raise the taxes,’ … I agree with the mayor,” Vogt said. “Next year, sometime soon, we’re going to have to call this forth because our budget is tight.”
Also a former teacher, Althauser said she was torn and believes the city needs to not only support the school district and the students, but also support growth within the city to ensure Centralia is a place where students who graduate want to stay.
“We are falling behind as a city, not making these tough decisions. Nobody wants to hear more taxes, but we’re falling behind when you look at other surrounding areas,” Althauser said. “So supporting our city and the kids’ future, that’s really what messaging needs to get out, that we’re supporting our kids and our future.”
Following the meeting, Althauser added her support for passing the school district’s levy remained the same. She said she will be doorbelling for it.
“But we have to build a city where (students) want to stay and grow,” Althauser said.
