Are our oohs and aahs in jeopardy? City of Tacoma to stop funding July 4 fireworks show
Tacoma plans to eliminate city funding for its annual Fourth of July fireworks show, hopeful that costs will instead be covered by the event’s presenter and community sponsors.
The cut, which is estimated to save Tacoma $180,000 in the 2025-26 biennial budget, was just one of 11 financial reductions recently moved forward by the City Council as it sought to curtail spending by $4.7 million. New money for animal sheltering also was among items planned to be reduced.
City lawmakers were presented with the money-saving proposals during a committee meeting on Jan. 24 to address an ongoing structural budget deficit. They weren’t required to vote on the cuts and only provided feedback because it was established in December that additional money needed to be shaved off the current budget, city spokesperson Maria Lee said Friday.
The city reported facing a $24 million shortfall when efforts began several months ago to close the gap between spending and revenues.
In December, the council adopted a balanced budget in part by identifying $5.6 million in cuts anticipated to result in eliminating roughly 26 mostly filled positions in general government, officials said. It was known then that the city would still need to cull $4.7 million more, prompting recent conversations during a Committee of the Whole meeting about where to pull the money.
In scrapping city-funded fireworks for the annual 4th of July Summer Blast event, Tacoma said it would explore transferring responsibility to the event’s current presenter and recruit community sponsors. If third-party funding doesn’t work out, the annual display would need to be canceled, making Tacoma one of few metropolitan cities in the region without fireworks on the holiday.
City officials were clear that they don’t anticipate Tacoma losing its Fourth of July fireworks.
“We’re going to lean into finding a way for it to happen, just not through General Fund funding,” City Manager Elizabeth Pauli said during the meeting.
Adam Cook, the director of Tacoma Venues and Events, told city officials that he believed there were opportunities for outsiders to fully fund the fireworks, although he noted he hadn’t yet tested the market. Over the past two years, a branding sponsor contributed slightly less than half the total cost, he added.
In past years, the city has spent more than $200,000 on the yearly celebration, including significant in-kind support for fire, police and public works departments and more, according to a city document.
Mayor Victoria Woodards asked that Cook notify city lawmakers should there be a gap in third-party funding at any point so that the city could brainstorm a course of action to keep the fireworks display going, even as she acknowledged during the meeting that it was unclear where the money would come from.
“I certainly don’t want to read in the newspaper that, because the city cut funding (for) the Fourth of July festival, there will be no fireworks,” she said.
Animal sheltering under negotiation
Beyond ending city funding for Fourth of July fireworks, the city proposed slashing money from its not-yet-finalized contract with the local Humane Society and agreed on eliminating five city positions and cutting nearly $1.5 million from its mental health and substance-use disorder fund that the city said it believes could be back-filled with opioid-settlement dollars.
Contract negotiations between the city and the Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County remained ongoing as of Friday, leaving the exact amount of financial shedding in flux. The Humane Society proposed a new two-year contract of roughly $3.1 million, which would represent an increase over the $1.6 million budgeted by the city for services during 2023 and 2024, according to Lee.
“It’s a big jump,” finance director Andy Cherullo said during the Committee of the Whole meeting.
Tacoma has suggested reducing the proposed $3.1 million contract by $600,000. Pauli described ongoing negotiations with the animal agency as “positive.”
The Humane Society, which says it’s one of the state’s largest animal welfare agencies, provides animal sheltering services for the city. The nonprofit handles stray, impounded or unwanted domestic pets turned over by the city or its residents, according to a previous contract between the two entities.
In general, the shelter offers spay/neuter and wellness vouchers, a monthly vaccine and wellness clinic, a pet food and supply pantry and more, its website says.
Regardless of how much the proposed contract rises, Pauli warned the city anticipated seeing less service from the Humane Society, which in November expressed concern about being in “crisis mode” due to over-capacity. The animal agency has made clear its issues with site constraints and staffing levels, according to Cherullo.
“We understand that the City of Tacoma is unable to meet the Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County’s proposed rates for the services we provide to animals in need,” agency spokesperson Lauren Green said in a statement Friday. “Since contract negotiations are ongoing, we are not in a position to share additional details at this time.”
Green added that the Humane Society remained committed to collaborating with the city to find a solution that “serves the best interests of our community and the animals who need us most.”
On Friday, Lee noted that it was difficult to predict the final contract terms or resulting service levels due to “many variables involved,” including rising costs and estimated number of animals.
A city document outlined the potential consequences of eliminating more than a half-million dollars in requested spending to the animal agency: There could be fewer shelter hours and also limitations on accepting animals from community members when the shelter is at capacity, among other issues.
During the committee meeting, City Council member John Hines said it was possible that the city could generate additional revenue by increasing licensing fees for cats and dogs, including higher costs for animals not spayed or neutered.
More in latest round of cuts
Meanwhile, the city plans to eliminate a handful of positions, including at least two vacant jobs.
The chief strategy officer role will be no more and that work will be consolidated into a newly titled “director of strategy, equity and human rights.” A vacant position in Tacoma’s Arts and Cultural Vitality division, expected to be filled this year, will be eliminated, but the city said there were still seven positions to deliver related services.
The Tacoma Fire Department will cut two non-commissioned administrative support-service positions, according to a city document. Lastly, a fleet and facilities analyst vacancy — tasked with handling deferred maintenance, remodels and more for fire, police, public works and city buildings — will be eliminated.
In a departure from talks of cutting, Tacoma plans to add an auditor in the Tax & License office to increase compliance with city tax laws. The new hire is expected to increase revenues for the current budget by $530,000, according to a city document. Tacoma currently employs six tax auditors who bring in about $4 million annually for the General Fund, Cherullo said.
Pauli said that any cost-cutting proposal directly affecting public-safety services was not considered during the meeting.
The Council, which met Friday at a retreat to discuss policy priorities, must still wrangle with an anticipated $15 million budget deficit in the next biennium even with the aforementioned cuts, according to city officials.
At the Jan. 24 meeting, Council member Joe Bushnell said while eliminating wasteful spending is often talked about, none of the planned reductions were “fluff” in his opinion, and he wasn’t happy about any of the difficult decisions.
“I feel like we are carving into the bone of the city in order to make the budget work,” Bushnell said.
Council member Kiara Daniels told city staff that she welcomed the creativity employed in deciding on the latest round of cuts, given the difficult circumstances faced by the city.
“I just appreciate the work that was done to be mindful of staff and reconfiguring and reorganizing to keep as many folks and to keep as many programs as we can,” Daniels said.
This story was originally published February 3, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
