By Jessica Ricks and Marcus Dieterle
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writers
Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz proposed a $1.98 billion budget for the 2017 fiscal year that would increase spending by 1.78 percent but hold the line on property taxes for the 28th year in a row.
The spending plan, which was officially released Thursday, calls for spending $905 million on the public schools and colleges, a 3.7 percent increase from the current fiscal year.
Kamenetz has also proposed spending $349 million on public safety, a 2.6 percent increase from 2016; and $304 million on general government activities such as health, recreation, public works and economic development, a 1.3 percent increase.
Under the budget, the county income tax rate would remain at 2.83 percent while real property taxes would continue to be levied at $1.10 for every $100 of assessed value. This means that the average homeowner in the county would pay an estimated $2,472 in property taxes, according to the budget summary. Personal property tax remains at $2.75.
The budget now goes to the County Council, which must approve the measure. The budget would go into effect on July 1.
“Fiscal responsibility is the cornerstone of any well-managed government,” Kamenetz said in his budget message to the council. “Once again, our proposed budget is within the County Council’s spending affordability guidelines, with no increase in the tax rates.”
According to Kamenetz, it has been 28 years since the county raised property tax and 24 years since it has raised income taxes. He said he hopes to continue that record in the future.
As outlined in the budget, most of the revenue – about 29.3 percent – comes from property taxes. State aid, the income tax, fees and other revenue, federal aid, service taxes and fund balance make up the rest of the county’s revenue stream.
“I think there’s always a choice to be made on every budget,” said County Councilman Julien E. Jones, Jr., D-District 4. “A lot of it is driven by need. It may be heavy in one place and light in another.”
The vast majority of the money goes to schools, colleges, and libraries, which make up 60.7 percent of the total budget. The total spending set aside for schools is about 900 million, an increase of 3.7 percent from this year. The county will spend approximately $8,160 per student.
“Having a well-educated workforce is also vital to our county’s prosperity,” Kamenetz said in his statement. “That is why we invest more than half of our county’s tax dollars in public schools, community college and the library system every year.”
A large portion of the educational budget will give more funding to the Schools For Our Future fund, which aims to add 15 more schools, 11 new additions, and 8,500 new classroom seats to the county school system.
Schools For Our Future is also reaching for the goal of reducing the number of schools without air conditioning. The program hopes to install air conditioning in the 10 remaining un-air conditioned schools by 2019.
BCPS Superintendent Dr. S. Dallas Dance commended Kamenetz and the council in a statement released to the news media.
“Their commitment to modernizing existing schools and building new schools to accommodate our growing student population is exceptional,” Dance said.
This year’s budget will create 130 additional teaching positions, increasing the number of foreign language instructors, ESOL, special education and health personnel.
“The spending for schools is always really big overall,” Jones said. “There may come a time when it will slow down when most schools will be modernized – within the next two to three years after making renovations to our schools.”
The budget would also give approximately $53 million to the Community College of Baltimore County. The library system will also receive $500,000 to lend tablets and increase access to e-books and technology among the library’s 400,000 active users.
In addition to spending on education, Kamenetz is proposing that the county spend approximately $350 million on public safety, including$95 million for the fire department and just over $200 million for police.
According to Kamenetz, the county’s crime rates are at historic lows. In order to further improve safety, the county will initiate a police body camera program, using speed camera revenue, in every Baltimore County precinct within the next two years.