Minor change made in ballot wording

A King County Superior Court judge on Monday made only a minor change to the wording of a Redmond ballot measure slated to go to voters next month that would raise the property-tax rate by more than 50 percent.

A group of city residents had recently challenged the language of the ballot measure, saying it was biased in favor of passage by telling voters that budget cutbacks would result without the increase.

The ballot title had read like this:

"To maintain our community and address critical needs by preserving current levels and avoiding cutbacks of basic services (such as fire, police, parks, traffic improvements), shall the City of Redmond increase its current regular property tax levy rate to $1.88 per $1,000 assessed valuation, beginning in 2007?"

On Monday, Judge Dean Lum deleted only the phrase, "maintain our community and." The rest of the ballot title, as well as the measure's explanatory statement, was unchanged, according to city officials.

Lum's decision was a victory for the city, since it maintained all the language about cutbacks if the measure does not pass May 16, city officials said.

The measure would raise the property tax rate by 65 cents per $1,000 of assessed valuation, beginning next year.

The group Financial Accountability in Redmond, led by former City Councilman Richard Grubb, had appealed the measure's wording in court and said it should be replaced with more-neutral language.

Ashley Bach: 206-464-2567