MoCo Question B would be a disaster

[Anonymous]

How many times has the county council used its power to vote unanimously for a tax increase? One time right? I’m voting against B.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Services will be cut. Libraries, police, fire, transportation. If you can't raise taxes.

They haven't recovered from the Recession because Leggett sank a lot of the restored revenues into raises for union collective bargaining agreements. Particularly in the year he ran for reelection.

Don't look too closely at the fiscal mess Elrich is creating. You won't be able to sleep at night.

A cap won't end bad governance. Vote him out.

The idea that the only way to even maintain the status quo on services is to (continually) raise taxes, is nonsense.

Yes- Moco is a financial mess, and yes a lot of that is Elrich's fault- but the bigger issues are:

- never standing up to the public unions
- a 100% progressive council, most of whom live in TP/ Downcounty Silver spring
- anti-business policies
-shrinking tax base as those with massive means, flee to VA
-school systems getting worse and worse, especially non W's

Absolute yes- vote Elrich out, sure. But dont make it even easier to raise taxes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Services will be cut. Libraries, police, fire, transportation. If you can't raise taxes.

They haven't recovered from the Recession because Leggett sank a lot of the restored revenues into raises for union collective bargaining agreements. Particularly in the year he ran for reelection.

Don't look too closely at the fiscal mess Elrich is creating. You won't be able to sleep at night.

A cap won't end bad governance. Vote him out.

The idea that the only way to even maintain the status quo on services is to (continually) raise taxes, is nonsense.

Yes- Moco is a financial mess, and yes a lot of that is Elrich's fault- but the bigger issues are:

- never standing up to the public unions
- a 100% progressive council, most of whom live in TP/ Downcounty Silver spring
- anti-business policies
-shrinking tax base as those with massive means, flee to VA
-school systems getting worse and worse, especially non W's

Absolute yes- vote Elrich out, sure. But dont make it even easier to raise taxes.

Montgomery County is about to approve hundreds of millions of dollars in subsidies for developers. And now they want to raise taxes so that we can pay for them? I don't think so. Yes on B.

[Anonymous]

I moved to Howard County 6 years ago, but still have a rental property in Kensington.

When Andrew Friedson (who I like btw!) is considered the conservative/moderate on the CC that tells you all you need to know. It is lefter than left. Spend, spend, tax, tax.

Duncan, and Ike Leggett could maintain some minor sense of pro business moderation, but Elrich caters to the council. It's awful.

Moco is on a fast train to fiscal insolvency, and continuing to further soak the taxpayers to pay for years of non negotiation with unions, blatant pandering to illegals (note, yes I said "illegals", and not terms like "undocumented" that imply some sort of clerical error), have sent the county down a tough path.

"B" is just the smallest steps to putting the brakes on that.

Dont let the fact it is Robin Ficker, dissaude you from decent legislation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I moved to Howard County 6 years ago, but still have a rental property in Kensington.

When Andrew Friedson (who I like btw!) is considered the conservative/moderate on the CC that tells you all you need to know. It is lefter than left. Spend, spend, tax, tax.

Duncan, and Ike Leggett could maintain some minor sense of pro business moderation, but Elrich caters to the council. It's awful.

Moco is on a fast train to fiscal insolvency, and continuing to further soak the taxpayers to pay for years of non negotiation with unions, blatant pandering to illegals (note, yes I said "illegals", and not terms like "undocumented" that imply some sort of clerical error), have sent the county down a tough path.

"B" is just the smallest steps to putting the brakes on that.

Dont let the fact it is Robin Ficker, dissaude you from decent legislation.

You don't live in MoCo so you should mind your own business. All these people using the word "soak" seem like the same person.

[Anonymous]

Capping property tax increases makes sense in MOCO. The budget has been so mismanaged and there has been zero focus on bringing in any business revenue. Income tax increases and sales tax increases are possible but far more variable. Elrich has been counting on raising property taxes to avoid not giving the unions whatever they want or cutting back on county expenses.

I can see why Elrich's supporters are so enraged by this one. It cuts off their future path to re-elections because they can no longer buy the unions off and they need to start managing the budget not just raising the taxes.

Its likely to pass too. What property owner doesn't want to see a cap on their property tax? Renters know that higher property taxes will get passed on to them. Heck even people planning on leaving MOCO in the next few years would not want property taxes increasing because it would hurt the resale value of their home.

[Anonymous]

Just a friendly reminder for those who aren't reading the full thread that if approved, Question B will put the county's AAA bond rating at risk.

We already have a revenue cap in Montgomery County. The Charter requires a unanimous vote of the County Council to exceed it. Question B would make the cap permanent. Meaning if an unexpected cost occurs (like the state shifting pension costs to the county, as it did a few years ago, and it's not an insignificant cost), or if the state changes the education funding formula so MoCo gets less state aid for schools, the Council will have no choice but to reduce services and/cancel or postpone capital projects like school renovations. And it means as property values go up, county revenues can't keep up to pay workers enough to live in the county. It's a terrible idea.

[Anonymous]

Also, stop trotting out Elrich as a reason to vote for Question B. He is an elected official. He is term limited and can be voted out. Question B will be permanent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If we can’t justify a tax increase in a good economy- which MOCO certainly has -then when CAN we justify one?

Tax assessments and property taxes are ridiculously low in MOCO. They should be double or triple what they currently are, and until they are brought up to where they should be, we’re never going to have the kind of county services we should have.

So sick of hearing people who call themselves Progressive constantly complaining about paying taxes. Put your money where your lying mouths are and pony up your taxes

Holy cow. You are loopy. You do realize that if property taxes went up even 50%, there would be a massive exodus of the people actually paying into the County's coffers, right?

Bullsh*t.

No one will be leaving if their taxes go up a few thousand dollars a year. That’s utter rubbish. And anyone who does, well, they can thank the rest of us for their higher property values at sales time, that are the result from being in a county that is fully and completely funded and offers the entire spectrum of services, unlike now.

Imagine the kind of place Montgomery could be if it had two or even three times the available tax revenue for spending on things. We’d be the most desirable county in the country. For every dipshit republican complaining about higher taxes moving out, there’d be three people in bidding wars to buy the house they’re leaving. I’ll take that bargain.

Soaking the rich has been tried before and did not work. Especially now, many are realizing that jobs are portable.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703976804575114241782001262

". Montgomery County, outside of Washington, D.C., is Maryland's wealthiest and was especially clobbered, losing nearly $4 billion in taxable income in 2008, with some 80% of those lost dollars from high-income returns."

So a bunch of rich rethuglicans moved out. Good riddance. I’m not convinced those numbers you quoted are accurate. And even on the off chance they are, so what? Just raise taxes and make up the difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just a friendly reminder for those who aren't reading the full thread that if approved, Question B will put the county's AAA bond rating at risk.

We already have a revenue cap in Montgomery County. The Charter requires a unanimous vote of the County Council to exceed it. Question B would make the cap permanent. Meaning if an unexpected cost occurs (like the state shifting pension costs to the county, as it did a few years ago, and it's not an insignificant cost), or if the state changes the education funding formula so MoCo gets less state aid for schools, the Council will have no choice but to reduce services and/cancel or postpone capital projects like school renovations. And it means as property values go up, county revenues can't keep up to pay workers enough to live in the county. It's a terrible idea.

They can cut all those ridiculous social justice programs. They.can stop giving themselves raises. they can manage and audit their employees before they run off with a shitload of $$$. they can stop giving severance payments to employees that are fired. they can cut bloated pension benefits for highly compensated employees, they can stop wasting money on programs that just dont work. I can go on and on...

[Anonymous]

Could someone please neutrally summarize question b and what it would mean for (a) my property taxes (bought in 2018, currently pay about $7k a year) and (b) moco schools (assuming we flipping go back). I used to live in Cali and prop 13 destroyed public schools. I’d hate for that to happen here. Trying not to let my anger at the MCPS DL situation cloud what’s best long term.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Could someone please neutrally summarize question b and what it would mean for (a) my property taxes (bought in 2018, currently pay about $7k a year) and (b) moco schools (assuming we flipping go back). I used to live in Cali and prop 13 destroyed public schools. I’d hate for that to happen here. Trying not to let my anger at the MCPS DL situation cloud what’s best long term.

A. Question B means your property taxes are less likely to increase as much. Right now, the Council rarely increases revenues beyond inflation because they need a unanimous vote. (The Homestead Tax credit also limits homeowner's tax increases but I don't know much about it). With Question B, the Council would be prohibited from doing so at all. Your property tax bill would still increase, based on inflation and if your property value increases more than other properties in the County.

B. Not good. If I recall correctly, when they have increased taxes it was to fund schools beyond maintenance of effort. If this passes, it's much more likely the Council will find the schools at the minimum level (which is based on last year's budget).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just a friendly reminder for those who aren't reading the full thread that if approved, Question B will put the county's AAA bond rating at risk.

We already have a revenue cap in Montgomery County. The Charter requires a unanimous vote of the County Council to exceed it. Question B would make the cap permanent. Meaning if an unexpected cost occurs (like the state shifting pension costs to the county, as it did a few years ago, and it's not an insignificant cost), or if the state changes the education funding formula so MoCo gets less state aid for schools, the Council will have no choice but to reduce services and/cancel or postpone capital projects like school renovations. And it means as property values go up, county revenues can't keep up to pay workers enough to live in the county. It's a terrible idea.

They can cut all those ridiculous social justice programs. They.can stop giving themselves raises. they can manage and audit their employees before they run off with a shitload of $$$. they can stop giving severance payments to employees that are fired. they can cut bloated pension benefits for highly compensated employees, they can stop wasting money on programs that just dont work. I can go on and on...

The already cut pensions for non public safety employees. They are not going to stop the "ridiculous social justice programs" and if they did, they are a drop in the bucket. I can think of exactly one case of an employee stealing money in the last decade - that was less than a drop in the bucket. Which programs just don't work? How much do they cost?

And don't be silly. MoCo employees don't get fired. Question B is definitely not going to change that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I moved to Howard County 6 years ago, but still have a rental property in Kensington.

When Andrew Friedson (who I like btw!) is considered the conservative/moderate on the CC that tells you all you need to know. It is lefter than left. Spend, spend, tax, tax.

Duncan, and Ike Leggett could maintain some minor sense of pro business moderation, but Elrich caters to the council. It's awful.

Moco is on a fast train to fiscal insolvency, and continuing to further soak the taxpayers to pay for years of non negotiation with unions, blatant pandering to illegals (note, yes I said "illegals", and not terms like "undocumented" that imply some sort of clerical error), have sent the county down a tough path.

"B" is just the smallest steps to putting the brakes on that.

Dont let the fact it is Robin Ficker, dissaude you from decent legislation.

You don't live in MoCo so you should mind your own business. All these people using the word "soak" seem like the same person.

Excuse me. I still own property in Moco, which I pay property tax on. I lived there for over 30 years. I have tons of family and friends there.

So don't tell me to "mind my own business". It is very much MY business. Thanks for your concern though!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I moved to Howard County 6 years ago, but still have a rental property in Kensington.

When Andrew Friedson (who I like btw!) is considered the conservative/moderate on the CC that tells you all you need to know. It is lefter than left. Spend, spend, tax, tax.

Duncan, and Ike Leggett could maintain some minor sense of pro business moderation, but Elrich caters to the council. It's awful.

Moco is on a fast train to fiscal insolvency, and continuing to further soak the taxpayers to pay for years of non negotiation with unions, blatant pandering to illegals (note, yes I said "illegals", and not terms like "undocumented" that imply some sort of clerical error), have sent the county down a tough path.

"B" is just the smallest steps to putting the brakes on that.

Dont let the fact it is Robin Ficker, dissaude you from decent legislation.

You don't live in MoCo so you should mind your own business. All these people using the word "soak" seem like the same person.

Excuse me. I still own property in Moco, which I pay property tax on. I lived there for over 30 years. I have tons of family and friends there.

So don't tell me to "mind my own business". It is very much MY business. Thanks for your concern though!

You still don't live there, so you don't have a vote on the matter. What you say is irrelevant.