Montgomery County Taxpayers League Meeting
www.mctaxpayersleague.org
Wednesday, September 16, 2015 - 7:00 - 9:00 pm
5th Floor Conference Room, Council Office Building
100 Maryland Avenue, Rockville, MD 20850
Topic: "Smash the Charter Limit on Property Taxes or Decelerate Spending?"
Speakers: Steve Farber, Council Administrator, Montgomery County Council
Joseph Beach, Director of Finance, Montgomery County Government
Questions sent to the speakers in advance of the meeting:
1.
There is a widely held belief that Montgomery County has been an ardent
follower of Parkinson's Law: "expenditure rises to meet income". Now
that the income situation is bleak, what are the approaches being used
by the County Executive and the County Council to cutting expenditures.
Are there any analyses of programs that have outlived their original
intent but continue to linger on? Are most budget reductions just a
nibbling around the edges? What are some of the criteria used to
analyzing existing programs? How many programs have actually been cut
by more than 50%? How many exist despite those cuts?
2. (a) Personnel costs are growing faster than
inflation. The
savings plan proposed by the Executive and
the plan adopted by the County Council provide little relief from ever
climbing personnel costs, and have focused instead on non-recurring
costs like CIP projects funded with current revenues, new programs and special project costs. How should
the 2016 budget process and contract negotiations address out of control
personnel costs to avoid the need for bigger cuts to services or possible furloughs?
2. (b)
Most retiree taxpayers will likely not receive any increase in 2016
retirement
annuities due to a negative or flat Consumer Price Index (CPI). Most
working taxpayers will not receive generous salary increases. The current system
of contract negotiations with unions is tilted heavily in favor of the
unions as there is no representation by the taxpaying public. Collective
bargaining has an enormous impact on the County's fiscal situation.
How open is the County Executive and the County Council to making these
negotiations more transparent and to include a few taxpayers in the
negotiations process?
3. Income tax revenue increases are driven largely by capital gains which have been in a slump since the 30% run up in the S&P index in 2013. Recent stock market indications point to even lower results for 2016, creating a need for further spending cuts, or property tax increases above the charter limit. How much in further spending cuts are needed in FY 2016 to avoid busting the charter limit, assuming Wynne case projections are correct and income tax shortfalls are the same as last year? Regarding the Wynne decision, where Maryland was found to be double-taxing business owners, does the political leadership find it ironic that this ill-conceived decision to double tax might lead to even greater taxation of all taxpayers to fill the gap?
5. County taxpayers are providing funding for migrant support services for education, affordable housing, food
stamps, and medical services. While these are seen as legitimate needs and the County has stepped up to this responsibility, how much of the county budget goes towards funding these needs? How much does the County get reimbursed by the Federal Government? By the State?
Right On! Just pour more money into the Black Hole.
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