Lompoc City officials are trying to figure out how they can close a 3.6 million dollar budget gap. A heated discussion included a 1 percent sales tax and cuts to the budgets of the city’s fire and police departments. Mayor Jenelle Osborne suggested that cuts were not the answer in solving the city’s long term budget woes and pointed out that other communities were facing similar problems when it comes to balancing a budget and paying rising Cal-Pers debt.