Rathdrum OKs budget, raises

RATHDRUM — The Rathdrum City Council on Wednesday approved the final draft of a 2023-24 budget.

The budget does not include a property tax increase, but did include a significant wage increase for city employees.

“I have concerns, as mayor, for the size of the increase to the staff’s pay,” Mayor Vic Holmes said. “And I’m thinking very hard about what to do. I want you to be aware that the mayor has authority to veto the budget. There is a time frame in which (the budget) has to be passed. And I would do it in a timely manner, if I did go that route, so that you would have an opportunity to override the veto.”

Council members supported the wage hike during workshops and largely doubled down to do so again for the budget approval.

With up to 9% wage increases, the city will still a see $148,292 surplus for the year. Those savings can be allocated to city projects that come up throughout the year.

A large chunk of the cost adjustment went to raises in the Rathdrum Police Department, where Police Chief Tomi McLean struggles to retain staff or hire new officers.

Councilman Steven Adams said it is a large pay hike.

“But our officers are underpaid and we are in the third- or fourth-safest city in the state," he said. "So we need to support them. And we can’t afford to lose them.”

The starting wage of a police officer is $23.32 per hour. The approved budget would see that increase to $24.72.

The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office is aggressively recruiting deputies with wages starting at $27.70 and up to $35.22 per hour.

“I will gladly say that when we were going through the budget workshop I suggested increasing staff wages,” Councilman John Hodgkins said. “No. 1 is rewarding retention within our employee base."

Raising wages would bring city staff’s salaries to compare to other local cities and would go a long way in retaining staff, council members argued.

“If we treat our employees like they make a difference, they will make a difference,” Councilman Mike Hill said.

City Administrator Leon Duce said Moscow is giving employees an 8% increase, and Sandpoint will add an 8% total adjustment.

Holmes said he remains concerned there will be an economic downturn.

“It sort of looks like that’s happening because the economy is slowing, as they say now," he said.

Early indicators pointed toward an economic recession in 2023, but all of those have been absorbed by the surprisingly strong labor market and continued demand, economist Sam Wolkenhauer said.

Rathdrum is one of the few cities in Kootenai County that will not increase property taxes in 2024.

“Year after year we’re trying to only budget for the things that we need,” Duce said. “It’s been since 2017 that we’ve taken any part of the property tax increase. We have been very good at growth paying for itself.”