2001 city budget directs more to legal expenses

Electric rate case noted as money for fund is more than tripled.

By FREDRICK J. JOHNSON

The Capital-Journal

Topeka taxpayers may see a smaller mill levy on the property tax statements they receive later this year, but a larger portion of that levy will be earmarked for legal expenses.

Mayor Joan Wagnon noted in her budget message last week that the city would have to raise the levy for its special liability fund to restore balances used to pay claim settlements in 2000 and the costs of defending against Wichita's complaint about electric rates before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in Washington, D.C.

Her proposed 2001 budget recommends a levy of 1.149 mills for the city's special liability fund. For the 2000 budget, the city levied 0.373 mills for that fund, which is used to pay settlements and hire attorneys to represent the city in legal actions.

The 1.149 mills is expected to raise $895,472 in property tax revenue. The 0.373 mills generated $274,488 for this year's special liability fund.

City attorney Linda Jeffrey said the city's only settlement to date this year has been $154,000 to Topeka developer H.T. Paul that stemmed from a controversial zoning case.

Paul tried to get a zoning change on property at S.W. 37th and Wanamaker Road that had been under a "resolution of intent" for the requested zoning, but the Topeka City Council denied the zoning when the issue went before it. Paul took his case to Shawnee County District Court and won, resulting in a settlement for damages.

Jeffery said the city in a normal year doesn't spend a lot of money for judgments but uses the special liability fund for defense costs.

The city usually is successful in winning summary judgments before cases against it go to trial or winning its cases at trial, she said, but it cost money just to get to that point.

Jeffery and her staff do what they can, she said, but aren't able to do all the work "in-house" and often have to use outside attorneys to handle some of the city's workload, which can range from an employee's discrimination case to a rate case before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The rate case with Wichita, she said, requires experience and expertise not found on the city staff. Lawyers with that experience don't come cheap, Jeffrey said.

The city supports five funds with property taxes and the overall mill levy would drop 0.161 mills, to 31.624 mills from 31.785 mills, under Wagnon's proposed 2001 budget.

Within the overall levy, the general fund levy would drop 0.314 mills, to 10.118 from 10.432; the general improvement fund levy would increase 0.215 mills, to 0.537 from 0.322; the general bond and interest fund levy would drop 0.611 mills, to 12.466 from 13.077; the parks and recreation fund levy would drop 0.228 mills, to 7.353 from 7.581; and the special liability fund would increase 0.776 mills, to 1.149 from 0.373.

Although the city's overall mill levy would decrease under Wagnon's proposed budget, the city will be able to raise more property tax revenue to support the 2001 budget due to an increase in the city's assessed valuation.

A mill represents $1 in property taxes for each $1,000 of assessed valuation. Under the proposed budget, the owner of a house appraised at $100,000, which is assessed for tax purposes at $11,500, would pay $363.67 in property tax.

The budget calls for property tax revenues of $24,651,760.

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