“Langley is ready for anything in 2001. Anything that involves a major cut in the city’s revenue sources.With a new tax cut initiative hanging over their heads this November, the city’s staff and administrators are taking a cue from the past as they plan the 2001 general fund budget around I-722. Langley’s City Council expects to approve the $902,677 budget tonight at its regular meeting, initiative hedging and all. If it does, it will also accept the possibility that it may have to return some of the taxes it collected in 2000.I-722, which is known by some as Son of I-695, makes several changes to Washington state tax law which would further limit state and local taxing ability. First, the law invalidates any 1999 tax increases made without voter approval. It also prohibits taxing districts from increasing property tax levies by more than 2 percent per year.In 1999, Langley’s city clerk/treasurer penned the city’s budget predicting the passage of I-695. Her prediction came true, but because of predictive planning, the city did not have to make any major budgetary adjustments. The effects of an approved I-722 show up in a number of budget line items. If the initiative passes, the city will collect about $6,000 less in property taxes in 2001 than in 1999. It could also see about $18,000 in hotel/motel taxes rolled back, which would effectively nullify a countywide tourism promotion fund to which the city was planning to contribute. On top of that, a yes vote for I-722 would force the city to refund more than $17,000 of hotel/motel taxes collected this year.New in this year’s budget will be a number of salary increases. This will be the first year that the city pays a full $24,000 to city administrator Eric Lucas. Lucas, who is also the city’s attorney, will receive a total of $56,000 in compensation for his services in 2001. Also hiked will be wages and benefits for the city’s clerking and bookkeeping staff and possibly those for the city’s police officers.Seeing a massive increase in expenditures will be the streets and storm drainage portion of the budget. Expenditures totaling $992,100 in this area will exceed general fund expenditures and are almost triple what the city spent in 2000. Several state grants for pedestrian walkways and pavement preservation account for $610,000 of the spending increase.The council meets at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall. Public comments about the budget are welcome. “