MACo Legislative Director Kevin Kinnally today testified in support of HB 1180 Property Tax Credit – Airport Noise Zones – Eligibility with amendments before the House Ways and Means Committee.

This bill expands the authority of local governments to grant a property tax credit for properties adjacent to the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) noise zone. While counties appreciate the bill’s flexibility, MACo requested an amendment to clarify that any expansion of an existing airport noise property tax credit is subject to the discretion of the local governing body.

From the MACo Testimony:

Under current law, local governments are authorized to grant a property tax credit for owneroccupied properties located within the 75 LDN noise contour as established by the airport noise zone adjacent to BWI. HB 1180 alters the credit to include properties in the 65 LDN contour, which extends farther out from the airport, and clarifies that local governments may grant the credit on a tiered system that varies the amount or duration of the credit based on where the property is situated in the airport noise zone.

Anne Arundel County currently grants a 50% property tax credit to residential properties located within the 75 LDN noise contour. By expanding the credit, the existing program may be affected, which could result in a larger fiscal loss than the County anticipated at the time of its local program adoption. An amendment would alleviate this concern by clarifying that any expansion of the existing credit is subject to the discretion of the local governing body.

Follow MACo’s advocacy efforts during the 2021 legislative session on MACo’s Legislative Tracking Database.