## Meeting Overview On the morning of October 7, 2024, the Bellingham City Council convened as a Committee of the Whole in the mayor's boardroom for what would prove to be one of their most substantive budget work sessions of the year. Mayor Kimberley Lund presided alongside seven council members, with Councilmember Edwin "Skip" Williams participating remotely. The meeting was dominated by budget discussions that laid bare the financial challenges facing Bellingham as it grapples with rising public safety costs, infrastructure needs, and revenue constraints. The session was structured around three main components: a comprehensive review of proposed revenue changes for the 2025 budget, detailed presentations from both the Police and Fire departments about their budgets and operational needs, and consideration of a significant environmental mitigation bank project. What emerged was a portrait of a city working to maintain essential services while navigating fiscal pressures that have become increasingly common in municipalities across Washington state. ## Revenue Restructuring — Navigating Budget Constraints Deputy Administrator Forrest Longman opened the budget discussion with a detailed presentation of what he termed "significant" revenue changes proposed for 2025. These changes represent both creative fiscal management and acknowledgment of the city's challenging financial position. The most substantial shift involves sales tax allocation. Currently, Bellingham divides its sales tax revenue with 60% going to the general fund, 37% to the street fund, and 3% to the radio fund. Under the 2025 proposal, the general fund allocation would increase to 68%, the street fund would drop to 32%, and radio funding would be eliminated as a separate allocation. "All of our other internal services we fund through direct charges to the departments that use them," Longman explained, noting that radio costs can be easily allocated per handset to departments that use them. This change nets the general fund an additional $1.4 million after accounting for increased radio expenses. The street fund, despite losing $1.6 million in sales tax rev…