State Cut to County Cash Not as Bad as Expected

This week, the Charles County Board of Commissioners received a breakdown detailing the effect that the General Assembly’s special session will have on county funds for the 2009 financial year (FY09). The total unexpected loss of $2,360,600 is substantially less than the $18 million loss the Board anticipated a few months ago, but still creates problems with this and next year’s budgets.

Board President, F. Wayne Cooper said that the county’s share of the state’s financial woes was lessened because our “local delegates and the Governor stood up for the counties and made certain we weren’t hit to that extent”. 

While not actually experiencing a budget cut, the Board of Education will get nearly $7 million less than the annual funding increase they were likely to receive based on prior years’ funding.  The concern is that this level of increase does not keep pace with inflation. 

The loss of the utility deregulation grant has been expected for several years and was therefore never included as potential county revenue for FY09. 

The increase in personal income tax exemptions, while positive for individuals, could negatively affect not only the county’s FY09 budget, but also the remainder of the current financial year.  According to County Administrator Paul Comfort, this year’s actual income tax revenue is ahead of the projections, which reduces the potential damage of the loss of revenue.   

The memorandum briefing the commissioners on the State’s Special Session impact on Charles County is reproduced above.