The following was submitted by St. Mary’s County Commissioner for District 2, Mike Hewitt.
The Commissioners of St. Mary’s County’s proposed fy2025 county budget includes a massive $15.2m increase in taxes, the largest tax increase in the history of St. Mary’s County. The high costs of food, housing, fuel, and utilities are stressing the budgets of all our residents. Raising taxes should be the last resort after all efforts to find savings have been exhausted. Now is the worst time to raise taxes on our residents.
More than one commissioner has placed the blame for raising taxes on the state for cutting revenues to our school system. The state has cited falling enrollment and the inefficient use of school facilities as reasons for reduced funding. The blueprint for education (blueprint) is credited as the reason “the state has let us down”. If passed, the local income tax rate will be the maximum allowed under Maryland law. By maxing out the rate we lose our flexibility to raise revenues at a later date if necessary. There are substantial savings to be found and it’s the reason I voted against the tax increases.
The blueprint is a state initiative that attempts to determine adequate funding amounts by the county to the Board of Education (BOE). The county has given the boe millions of dollars in funding above maintenance of effort, far exceeding the amount the blueprint recommends. The state claims the boe is not spending taxpayer dollars efficiently.
St. Mary’s County Public Schools (SMCPS) enrollment has been falling for several years. It has lost well over 500 students since the end of the COVID-19 crisis. Elementary schools have seen the majority of the lost enrollment and hundreds of seats are currently available. The board of education refuses to redistrict students to fill the empty seats. They claim student enrollment will increase but the current multi-year trend does not support their claim.
The blueprint calls for a starting teacher’s salary of $60k by July 1, 2026. The new contract with the teachers union starts the salary at $60k on July 1, 2024, two years early. That amounts to a 16.5% increase over 2023. The salary increases could be phased in over three years. A 5.5% increase on July 1, 2024, 2025, and 2026 would comply with blueprint formula requirements. Reasonable increases every year for the next three years would be similar to county and sheriff department employee salary increases.
The blueprint identifies St. Mary’s County with additional wealth due to rising property assessments and average salaries of its residents. The “wealth equalized” factor impacts state funding. Those impacts can be made up by the county. Projected fy2024 to fy2025 revenue growth is over $7m. The county can fund the wealth equalization formula reduction without raising income taxes. The boe can find savings by redistricting students and closing schools built almost seventy years ago. The reduction in staffing could be done through attrition and a hiring freeze.
There are hard decisions the BOE needs to make that benefits all county residents and not just the school system. It’s not fair to ask taxpayers, especially seniors, the poor, and those on fixed incomes to pay higher taxes when more efficient use of existing resources can make up the funding gap. The state hasn’t let us down by implementing the blueprint formula. Phasing in salary increases, redistricting students to fill empty seats, and closing old facilities will eliminate the need for a tax increase. Please reach out to the Commissioners and ask them to rescind this unnecessary tax increase.
Hey Mike- instead of approving every gas station and convenience store on just about every single intersection from one end of the county to the other- perhaps allowing CONDOS and Apartments where people can live- thus bringing in additional income tax revenue, additional STUDENTS and making our county better? Instead, y’all have abandoned Lexington Park proper, I don’t even know what mess you would call the old Millison Plaza redevelopment- You have been on the board (not by my vote) and you have allowed the disastrous over development of the county. You helped create the problem. People are leaving the county because there is nothing here except one huge truck-stop looking shopping area. Now the North End is going to look like a truck-stop. You failed to provide/allow adequate affordable housing, condos and apartments. That is why people are leaving.
I call BS.. there are more people in St. Mary’s now than ever. Big shocker a small town GOP business man is blaming the state. I wonder if school teachers think they’re are a lot of empty seats. I have kids in Elementary and High school here and I can tell you that’s not the case. Perhaps he has grandkids that only go to private schools and has no clue…
We have condos and apartments. There’s a new apartment complex on Route 5 and a new condo complex going up on Hollywood Road.
But that is not where it is needed. There is so much space *above* current buildings – like Target, Walmart, many of the vacant Shoppers Foods that just went bust. Its smart development and density- instead of sprawling things out- smart development is what is needed. Think about it- would you want to live in a condo where you have to drive to go shopping, or, simply take the elevator down and you have shopping right outside your door (figuratively). We need to ditch the current batch of commissioners and get folks elected that actually care about the county AND the residents and not just multi-billion dollar corporations.
Enough,,,
Mike Hewitt is a county man. He speaks his mind and he knows what is going on. I’ve known him for a very long time. He is truthful and I will vote for him again.
Because he’s a MAGA??
A county man that needs to understand things aren’t just “the county” anymore.
And he is very smart to our needs and the St.Mary county needs.
Where is all the gambling money going?
Thought that was supposed to find education
@Anonymous Preach…my friend!!!!
Where is all that revenue that allowing gambling was supposed to bring?
And what about all the pot revenue?????
WOW Anonymous good question. I have seen big #’s of $$ going to education in the state. I haven’t seen which school systems are getting the $ however. Want to bet the $$$ are going to Baltimore? Mike Hewitt is a good man. He does care for the county very much. He isn’t right all the time and does speak his mind. I do support him.
Grow up people, You don’t rise taxes when not warrior of rich people capitalism is doing at great time, You rise taxes when they pay their fair share, Hello,, What don’t you understand?
How to say this… I feel that this article is very neutral, without any clear political bias. Because of this, I think it is a very good article—quite realistic and down-to-earth.