Baltimore City Mayor Catherine Pugh yesterday proposed cutting property taxes in order to make the City more competitive with surrounding jurisdictions.
Mayor Pugh outlined her proposal during her third annual State of the City address.
“Cutting property taxes in Baltimore in order to be more competitive is necessary. For fiscal year 2020, I will achieve and fulfill the commitment to reduce the targeted homeowner’s tax credit by 20 cents. This was the “20 Cents by 2020” initiative under the previous administration, bringing the effective tax rate for owner-occupied residences to $2.048 beginning July 2019. Today we are announcing, Mr. President, that for fiscal year 2021 we will reduce the targeted homestead property tax by five cents, bringing the effective tax rate under two dollars to $1.998.”
According to The Baltimore Sun:
The back-to-back cuts should reduce taxes for an average Baltimore homeowner on a $158,379 house by $114, from $3,278 to $3,164.
The Pugh administration said the cumulative cost for the 20-cent reduction will be about $36 million in fiscal 2020. The additional nickel Pugh is knocking off will cost about $9 million.
The plan would ultimately require the approval of the City Council and the Board of Revenue Estimates to be implemented.
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Read the full text of the Twentieth Annual State of the City Address
