Baltimore County is the latest of a handful of Maryland counties to consider granting its public safety officers a property tax break if they live within the county, reports The Baltimore Sun.

The County Council will consider enacting the tax credit of up to $2,500 for eligible officers on Monday. The County estimates that the credit, if passed, would cost the County approximately $5.3 million annually, once fully phased in.

Baltimore City and Howard and Anne Arundel counties have already enacted the tax credit for their own public safety officers.  The Baltimore Sun reports:

During a public hearing last week, [bill sponsor Council Member Wade] Kach noted that other jurisdictions — including Anne Arundel and Howard counties — have passed similar property tax credits.

“So I see down the road that Baltimore County is going to be at a disadvantage in regard to attracting police, firefighters, correctional officers, volunteers, simply because those counties are giving this property tax break,” said Kach, a Cockeysville Republican.

The moves come after the General Assembly gave all local governments authority to issue the property tax credit during the 2017 session’s House Bill 979. The new law became effective on June 1, 2017, for tax years beginning in fiscal 2018. Baltimore City sought and received the approval one year earlier.