There will be no Montgomery County property tax hike this year, though County Executive Isiah Leggett warned Monday that there’s a chance of “significant” tax increases this time next year.
Leggett made the comments while presenting his recommended FY 2016 operating budget, a $5.1 billion proposal that would increase spending by 1.1 percent compared to the fiscal year that ends in June.
Leggett called it a “standstill” budget, citing the need to close an estimated $238 million budget gap. While he had warned residents that a property tax increase could be coming this year or next, Leggett said Monday it was unrealistic to expect all nine County Councilmembers to approve raising the property tax rate above the Charter limit in the next few months.
“This budget signals that our hard work of fiscal responsibility is not done,” Leggett said in prepared remarks. “We see lower-than-expected income tax revenues, a still fragile national economic recovery and the prospect of less State funding. While my FY16 budget is, essentially, a ‘same-services’ budget, I have strategically looked for opportunities in it to improve job growth and expand our tax base.”
Leggett recommended $2.3 billion in spending for Montgomery County Public Schools, which meets the state-mandated maintenance of effort minimum. Leggett proposed using another $27 million from the school system’s retiree health benefit fund. It put Leggett’s recommendation for school funding about $55 million short of the school system’s request.
Anticipating Leggett’s recommendation, the school system last week announced it is prepared to hold back 370 school-based staff positions for next year.
School system spokesperson Dana Tofig said the 370 positions are existing positions and MCPS hopes “to minimize layoffs through natural attrition.”
“We know that County Executive Leggett is committed to our school system because he knows that an investment in MCPS is an investment in the future of our county,” Board of Education President Patricia O’Neill said in a statement. “However, this level of funding is short of what’s needed to provide a world-class education to a growing number of students.”
Leggett’s recommended budget includes money for an expansion of the Bethesda Circulator route in downtown Bethesda to Bradley Boulevard and Battery Lane.
Monthly ridership on the Circulator, a free shuttle service provided by the Bethesda Urban Partnership, surpassed 30,000 trips for the first time in its history last year. BUP leaders have long heard requests to add stops along Battery Lane and Bradley Boulevard, two areas rich in apartment-dwellers and Metro commuters.
BUP spokesperson Stephanie Coppula said the expansion, if approved by the Council, would start in January 2016.
“We are currently evaluating an updated route that will include Bradley Boulevard and Battery Lane and are planning to announce the updated route later this year,” Coppula said.
Leggett’s recommended budget also includes money for a police body camera pilot program, a 2 percent salary increase for county employees and a 5 percent increase in the county Libraries budget, mostly for more materials.
Property tax bills for the owner of the average county home — valued at $455,000 — will go up about $15 to $3,805 because of increases home assessments. That means the property tax rate will actually drop by about 1 cent as required by the county Charter.
“In recent years, the Great Recession and its aftermath have created serious fiscal challenges for all governments,” Council President George Leventhal said in a statement. “Now, as the economy continues to recover steadily, we must carefully balance a wide array of County needs. That is what our Council committees and the full Council will undertake over the next two months.”
