It wasn't a $1.2 billion budget or higher utility fees that conjured up the most angst Monday night for the Mesa City Council.

It was fortune-telling.

After two people urged the council to protect public transportation, the budget for 2008-09 sailed through without a dissenting vote. So did a potential $1 billion in capital spending over the next five years. And so did rate hikes for water, sewer, natural gas and garbage pickup.

Eventually, the council worked its way down to an agenda item that called for the city to repeal its licensing provisions for fortune-tellers.

A subcommittee of the previous council had recommended the step in May, asserting the licenses and background checks served no purpose. Last year the city counted 14 licensed operators.

The item had been on the consent agenda, meaning it was slated for automatic approval with no discussion.

But two people who identified themselves as psychics asked to speak on the issue and pleaded to keep the licenses and the $300 annual fee.

"We really, really, really need to keep our fortune-tellers license in place," said Jennifer Adams, coming close to tears as she addressed the council. "We get a very bad reputation. Other people come to see me that tell me they got ripped off" by other psychics.

The licenses, she said, help the industry "get the riff-raff out."

Councilman Scott Somers said the licenses really don't speak to fortune-tellers' qualifications.

"It's not certification," he said, as is the case with other professions. "We're just taxing you."

But Councilwoman Dina Higgins said, "The system . . . has protected our community from crooks," and the $300 fee only covers the city's costs of administering the program.

After others echoed Higgins, Mayor Scott Smith said he favored repeal because he would rather see the free market determine which businesses succeed or fail.

"It does a pretty good job in most instances," Smith said.

The final vote was 4-3 in favor of keeping the licenses. Smith, Somers and Alex Finter voted for repeal; Higgins, Dave Richins, Dennis Kavanaugh and Vice Mayor Kyle Jones voted to keep them.