At its bimonthly meeting Tuesday, East Wenatchee City Council approved a sales tax increase and narrowed its search for a new councilmember.

Sales Tax Increase and Public Safety Funding

The new sales tax is allowed under a new law permitting municipalities to impose a tenth-of-a-percent sales tax with revenue dedicated to public safety. The new sales tax will be a total of 8.7 percent and will collect an estimated $550,000 annually.

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The city proposed the sales tax because of inflation, an increase in the jail contract, plus public defender costs. The city claims approximately 77 percent of all sales tax paid in East Wenatchee comes from non-residents.

Now that the sales tax passed, East Wenatchee Police Depart

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