Ritzville City Council passes 2020 budget

The Ritzville City Council voted to approve the $14.5 million 2020 budget ahead of schedule at its Dec. 3 council meeting, a budget that calls for the hiring of a fifth officer at the Ritzville Police Department.

Much of the discussion by the council and city officials about the budget was centered around the proposed hiring of a fifth police officer. Several councilmembers questioned whether the revenue sources being used to support the hiring of the additional officer were being accurately projected in the budget.

To fund the additional officer position, the budget calls for utilizing two ci...