September 2, 2010
On September 2 Governor Martin O’Malley announced his appointments to the Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission. The Commission, enacted by HB 474/SB 278 of 2010, is a long-term replacement for the Task Force on the Future for Growth and Development in Maryland and will provide a forum for the State, local governments, and other stakeholder groups to discuss growth and land use issues. The Commission is set to expire in 2020.
The Commission has a total of 36 members. Task Force chair Jon Laria will also serve as chair of the Commission. The following county officials are also members:
- Sandy Coyman, Director, Talbot County Department of Comprehensive Planning, Maryland Association of Counties Representative
- Mary Ann Lisanti, Harford County Council, Maryland Association of Counties Representative
- Greg Bowen, Director of Planning and Zoning, Calvert County, Representative from Southern Maryland
- Rollin Stanley, Director of Planning, Montgomery County, Representative from the Washington Metropolitan area
- Derick Berlage, Director of the Department of Land Use and Growth Management, St. Mary’s County, Representative from the Washington Metropolitan area
- Calvin Ball, Howard County Council, Representative from the Baltimore Metropolitan area
· Click on the Commission link above to see the Commission’s entire membership.
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Posted by Les Knapp
September 2, 2010
On Thursday October 7th, The Local Government Insurance Trust (LGIT) will be hosting its 23rd Annual Meeting, “Leading in Challenging Times.” Sessions include:
“Maryland’s Economic Forecast for Local Government”
Anirban Basu, CEO, Sage Policy Group
“Getting What You Want”
DeWitt F. McCarley, President,
International Municipal Attorneys Association
Academy for Excellence Core Courses:
*Ethics
Ernest Crofoot, Instructor
*Conducting Effective Meetings
Jay Gullo, Instructor
*Public Information Act
Robert McDonald, Instructor
For additional information or to register click here.
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Posted by Emily Hollis
September 2, 2010
On September 1 the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) submitted the State’s draft Phase I Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The draft presents a range of possible strategies for meeting the State and local Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) requirements and will be used to solicit public comment. As the executive summary states:
The current draft version of this Plan is expressly written to solicit public comments on a wide range of pollution control strategy options to restore and maintain the Bay. The Plan will be finalized based on those comments and will serve as a starting point for a Phase II planning process, which will occur in 2011. The table of strategies presented below are options, not final selections, and the options chosen to implement the needed reductions will be selected with the benefit of the public comments received in the coming months.
Given significant time constraints and limitations of current data and models, it is almost certain that the TMDL allocations associated with this Phase I Plan will change during Phase II. This will give interested parties opportunity to comment on the allocations in the Bay TMDL and the implementation strategies needed to achieve a healthy Bay for our families and for future generations.
Based on 2009 loading levels, septic systems and agriculture must make the greatest percentage reduction for nitrogen, urban sources and controlled animal feeding operations (CAFOs) for phosphorous, and CAFOs and urban sources for sediment/suspended solids. If all strategies contained in the draft WIP were implemented, it is estimated the State would exceed its TMDL goals by 30%.
In handling growth, the State is proposing to include some growth projections into the nutrient load numbers but also require offsets for new growth/development. The offsets would be tiered so that new septic systems would have to provide the most offsets while dense urban areas on enhanced nitrogen removal sewerage systems would have to provide the least. The range of options for septic systems includes voluntary upgrades to nitrogen removal technology to hooking up houses currently served by septic systems to public water and sewer to requiring all septic systems within 1000′ of a stream to upgrade to nitrogen removal technology.
The Phase I WIP must be completed by December 31. The Phase II WIP, to be completed in 2011, will include detailed strategies that the State and local governments must follow to reach their TMDL goals. MDE has formed a WIP Stakeholder Advisory Committee to help shape the final form of the Phase I WIP as well as draft the Phase II WIP. Both MACo and the Maryland Municipal League has representatives on the Advisory Committee.
As previously reported on Conduit Street, the State has scheduled a series of four public meetings to discuss the Phase I WIP across the State. Each meeting will be preceded by a special briefing for local governments. The EPA is also holding three regional public meetings on TMDLs.
EPA Transmittal Letter
Draft Phase I WIP
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Posted by Les Knapp
September 2, 2010
An article by MarylandReporter writer Megan Poinski, shares the good news that was discussed at the September 1 Board of Public Works meeting; the State has a Fiscal 2010 General Fund balance of $344 million. That’s over $180 million more than anticipated. However, revenues are still down.
In 2010, Maryland collected 3.7% less than it did in 2009 – and $1.1 billion less than in 2008. Revenues are still down for county governments as well. In the August income tax distribution to counties released by the comptroller this week, most counties received less money last month than in August 2009 based on projected tax collections.
By law, the fund balance goes into the State’s Rainy Day Fund.
More coverage can be found in the Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Business Journal, and Daily Record.
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Posted by Andrea Mansfield
September 2, 2010
The St. Mary’s Board of Education has submitted its state capital improvement plan to the Board of County Commissioners, requesting $12.7 million in state aid for the construction of a new elementary school. The Washington Post reports,
Despite the completion of a 200-seat addition to Leonardtown Elementary School two years ago, the school already exceeds capacity, as does Evergreen Elementary School, which opened last year, said Kim Howe, the schools’ coordinating supervisor of capital planning and construction.
Even if the proposed school, which would have a capacity of 644 students, opens by the start of the 2015-16 school year, county elementary schools are projected to exceed capacity within two years.
Leonardtown Elementary opened this year with about 690 students; it has a capacity of 613. Evergreen Elementary has about 675 students this year; its capacity is 644. Both schools will probably top 700 students by the end of this month, Howe said.
To qualify for state aid, a school system must show that its schools are overcapacity by at least half the population of a future school, when the school is approved, and that it will be able to fill the school once construction is completed, Howe said.
“We were in a very good position last year. One of the things we had to do was show a capacity need,” which is clearly demonstrated, Howe said. The other requirement is a school site, which now is in place at the Hayden Farm, near Leonardtown.
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Posted by Emily Hollis
September 1, 2010
As was reported in a previous MACo blog post, the National Association of Counties (NACo) has unveiled its pilot Dental Discount Program to residents in 38 member counties nationwide. The cards that cost $59 a year for individuals or $69 for families, provide uninsured individuals with savings on a number of dental services. The Carroll County Board of Commissioners announced today that they were selected to participate in this NACo pilot program. In a press release Carroll County Board of Commissioners President Julia W. Gouge stated,
“Five years ago, I introduced the NACo Prescription Drug Card Program to Carroll County. Since then, our residents have saved over $1.7 million on their prescriptions. That’s why, as a NACo board member, I started asking about the dental program early on. I am proud to say that out of 3,068 counties in the United States, we are one of the 38 pilot counties for the program. This card is just one more opportunity for our citizens to save money, and it is easy to use. We have several participating dentists within the County. You can simply make an appointment with one of these dentists, present your card, and start saving. These programs are part of what makes Carroll County a great place to live, to work, and to play.”
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Posted by Emily Hollis
September 1, 2010
As Montgomery County students returned to school on Monday, parents and teachers alike noticed an increase in class sizes and student enrollment. The state’s largest school system had anticipated for an increase in class size, as well as, a decrease in teaching positions due to a 4.4% cut in the school systems operating budget; however enrollment figures surpassed the original enrollment projection. The Washington Post reports,
(Montgomery County Superintendent Jerry) Weast said he was confident that students would wind up in their correct classrooms, even if a wave of late registrations meant that the school system won’t know exactly how many students it has for another month. Montgomery schools expect about 144,000 students this year, and more than 2,200 students have registered in just the past few weeks. They’re still streaming in, officials said.
“Just think of planning a dinner party, how exciting it is, without knowing how many people are coming,” Weast said.
Weast also marked the release of a report Monday praising Montgomery’s early childhood program. The report, by the Foundation for Child Development and the Pew Center on the States, says the program has helped the county improve literacy and narrow performance gaps between racial and ethnic groups.
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Posted by Emily Hollis
September 1, 2010
A recent discussion in Bond Buyer highlights an interesting turn by one of the leading bond rating agencies:
Moody’s Investors Service is pushing state and local issuers to agree to indemnify and hold it and its officers harmless for any mistakes they might make as a precondition to assigning ratings on municipal bond transactions, market participants said Thursday.
The recently added provision to issuer rating applications means that an issuer would have to pay Moody’s legal costs for lawsuits — as well as any judgments against it — that are in any way related to the rating of the issuer’s securities, barring only “fraud or willful misconduct” on the part of Moody’s.
Alarmed market participants said that Moody’s has quietly added the indemnity language in the past few weeks to the fine print of applications that governmental issuers must complete for ratings. The provision comes on the heels of the new financial regulatory reform law that makes it easier for investors to sue rating agencies if they “knowingly or recklessly” fail to investigate the data they rely on to rate a security.
Nearly every local government issuing bonds routinely seeks a rating from Moody’s as part of that process, both in Maryland and across the country.
Read the full article here, and see the full language of the Moody’s contract here.
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Posted by Michael Sanderson
August 31, 2010
The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) has been awarded two national “Awards of Merit” by the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials for the state’s continuing revitalization efforts in the town of North Beach and DHCD’s Partnership Rental Housing Program. Governor Martin O’Malley stated,
“These awards from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials uphold and strengthen the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development’s reputation as a national leader in housing finance and community revitalization. We will continue to explore innovative approaches to expand affordable housing opportunities for all Marylanders and transform our neighborhoods into Smart, Green & Growing communities that offer a wonderful quality of life for residents.”
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Posted by Emily Hollis
August 30, 2010
Today, the Office of the Comptroller released its detail of the August distribution of county income taxes. According to the electronic message:
The August local income tax distribution totals $49.4 million, a 34.6% decline from last year’s distribution; all but three counties saw a decrease. This distribution includes two reconciling payments:
- the second quarter balance distribution, which is based on actual withholding and estimated taxes attributable to the second quarter of 2010, less amounts already distributed
- the final distribution for tax year 2009, which is volatile since it only accounts for returns processed over a three-week period, from June 8 through the end of the fiscal year (June 30)
Second quarter withholding receipts totaled just under $2.5 billion, an increase of 3.2%, as the Maryland unemployment rate stabilized. However, actual estimated payments dropped 7.9% to $346.1 million. After accounting for the $739.5 million distributed in May and June and the municipal share, the balance due of $40.5 million represents a decline of 43.9% from last year. The decline indicates that because the April, May and June withholding and estimated payments projection was closer to actual receipts this year than in previous years, most counties received their share of revenue earlier in calendar year 2010 than they did in calendar year 2009. The total second quarter distribution is $768.9 million, a decrease of 4.4% over 2009.
Finally, four counties saw an increase in local tax liability between tax years 2008 and 2009, led by St. Mary’s and Prince Georges counties. However, the increase in Prince Georges was mainly due to a rate increase from 3.1% to 3.2%.
If you have questions regarding the August distribution, please contact George Freyman of the Revenue Administration Division, at 410-260-7455.
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Posted by Andrea Mansfield
