Residents of a century-old Washington state town facing possible municipal bankruptcy because of a flurry of lawsuits will not be asked this fall if they want to dissolve the city to stop the financial drain caused by its mounting legal bills, Reuters reported today. Under pressure from residents opposed to disincorporation, Gold Bar city council members voted 4-to-1 on yesterday against putting the dissolution issue before local voters this fall. Instead, the nearly 2,100 citizens of Gold Bar, located in the foothills of the Cascades Mountains, will be asked in November whether they want to pay a one-time levy of between $100 and $150 per home in 2013 to offset the town's growing legal bills after the city council voted unanimously yesterday to put the issue before them. The council also agreed to transfer $77,000 from a city water fund into a litigation fund "as needed." Gold Bar does not have a city attorney and has to hire a private law firm to defend itself against the slew of mostly recall and public records lawsuits.
