County councilmembers are expected to vote May 25 on the Fiscal Year 2024 $6.7 billion budget. About half of those dollars are slated for the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS).
Thursday, following lengthy discussions and multiple meetings, the council took a straw vote in favor of a 4.7-cent property tax increase. That rate is slightly less than half of what County Executive Marc Elrich proposed. He called for a 10-cent property tax increase with most of the proposed funding going toward MCPS.
Below are the individual remarks councilmembers made on why they voted for or against the budget.
For the 4.7 cent increase:
Against the 4.7 cent increase:
Vice President Andrew Friedson
County Executive Marc Elrich Expresses ‘Concern’
I want to acknowledge my colleagues on the County Council for their work on getting the Fiscal Year 2024 Operating Budget to its final stage. I appreciate their willingness to consider the proposals I placed before them on March 15. The actions the Council took today in a straw vote on the budget includes 98 percent of my recommended budget and funds many critical services for our residents. I greatly appreciate the unanimous support almost all of my proposals received, including the important compensation increases for our outstanding County employees.
However, I am concerned that the Council’s decision on both the tax rate and level of spending could put us in a difficult situation going forward. First, the Council set the supplemental property tax rate for education below the level of new education spending, which will put us in a deficit for the Montgomery County Public Schools. I greatly appreciate the comments of Councilmembers Stewart, Mink and Jawando, who pointed out this problem during the debate over the tax rate and showed their courage to oppose a rate too low to meet our student needs and our fiscal reality. The budget, as passed, does not address all of the needs highlighted in the school budget, and we do not yet know how MCPS will use these funds since those decisions are not in the purview of the County Council, nor the Executive. Make no mistake: I applaud the vote that Councilmembers Katz, Fani-Gonzales, Balcombe, Luedtke, Sayles, Glass, and Albornoz took to raise additional necessary funding for our schools, but I do remain concerned that the vote today will leave us facing a similar debate next year. I do want to note that after sending my recommended budget over in March, I began talking with Councilmembers about ways to reduce the proposed tax while continuing to provide the needed funding for MCPS.
Additionally, the Council made some confusing and conflicting spending decisions. It rejected increased funding for fuel and utility costs that will also leave the County Government in a difficult position of keeping our buses, police cars and fire trucks running. After spending weeks raising outsized concerns about vacant County positions, the Council rejected all of the necessary improvements to our recruitment and training programs. During a time of dramatic climate change, the Council also has rejected many critical investments in our efforts to combat this existential threat.
I am concerned the Council’s actions will force us to request mid-year adjustments to fund basic needs, including fuel and critical services, such as sheltering for the homeless. It is my hope that the Council will work collaboratively with my team to make mid-year additions and changes if they are needed because of items not included in the budget as presented.
As we reach the end of this year’s budget approval process, I want to thank the Executive Branch team for its hard work and contributions in developing this budget, particularly the outstanding staff in the Office of Management and Budget. I also want to thank the hard work and contributions of the Council staff, Montgomery County Public Schools, the Board of Education, Montgomery College, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission and the Housing Opportunities Commission.
Finally, I want to thank the many residents of our County who engaged in the budget process and shared their views.
I look forward to working with everyone on issues in the coming year as we continue to make Montgomery County the best place to live and work.
MCEA: “Council votes to starve our school system’
Last week the leadership from three school unions, Superintendent Dr. McKnight, and Board President Karla Silvestre informed the council that the absolute lowest revenue enhancement possible to fund the school budget would be 8 increments of tax-supported funding. Nevertheless, the council voted to pass a measure that deprives students, educators, administrators, and support personnel of substantial resources they desperately need.
Powerful monied interests spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to block a tax that would have fully funded the MCPS budget. Their efforts have largely paid off. Although thousands of students participated in two separate walk-outs, over ten thousand community members signed a petition sent to the county council, and countless others made phone calls advocating for a fully funded budget, most of the council ignored their pleas. Today, the county council showed that they care more about their political future and donations from developers than they do about doing what is right for children, youth, and families. After this vote, we are left to wonder what kind of county they want ours to be.
The council vote today reveals:
- They are willing to undermine the superintendent in her efforts to improve student learning outcomes and improve safety in our schools.
- They are willing to let the staffing crisis continue.
- They are willing to underserve our students.
- They lack the courage to raise taxes sufficiently to provide sustainable and reliable funding, and instead are willing to resort to raiding one-time funding sources.
We are dismayed by the county council’s decision today to turn their backs on the students and communities they serve. If they hold fast to this decision in their final vote on May 25th, MCEA members will remember their votes the next time candidates seek our endorsement. While the final responsibility for funding our negotiated agreements lies with MCPS, our members will not forget the role the county council played in bringing us to this point.
No more platitudes and proclamations about the importance of educators and our public schools. The educators of MCEA call for the council to reconsider their actions today and fully fund our schools.
Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors
A property tax increase will drive up the cost of living for residents, especially seniors; increase the rising cost of housing and hamper economic growth.
In the following days, the Council will decide whether to approve hundreds of millions of dollars in new government expenses by increasing property taxes to support this spending spree. When combined, these troublesome tax hikes will further exacerbate the affordability crisis at a time when Montgomery County homeowners are already facing higher property tax bills due to rising property assessments. We call on the Council to demonstrate fiscal responsibility and hold the line against raising property taxes.
