The Frederick County Council adopted a $792 million operating budget and a $215 million capital budget for the next fiscal year.
The fiscal 2023 operating and capital budgets, proposed by County Executive Jan Gardner, invest in education, public safety, core services, libraries, school construction, and more. Funding for education and public safety makes up about 70 percent of the operating budget.
While the operating budget increases approximately 10 percent over the current fiscal year, the County’s real property tax rate remains unchanged, at $1.06 per $100 of assessed value.
Last year, MACo was instrumental in passing the Local Tax Relief for Working Families Act, which equips counties with the proper tools and flexibility to levy the local income tax with greater equity and fairness. The bill authorizes counties to impose the local income tax on a bracket basis, just like most income tax systems (including the federal and state taxes on Marylanders).
The County Executive’s budget includes targeted tax relief for ALICE households. Taxpayers who file “joint status” returns and have a taxable income of $100,000 or less and taxpayers who file “single status” returns with a taxable income of $50,000 or less will see a seven percent income tax rate reduction.
This targeted tax relief sets the tax rate for these individuals at 2.75 percent rather than the current 2.96 percent. Over 80,000 tax filers (60 percent of County taxpayers) will see this rate reduction. The targeted tax relief will help seniors, ALICE households, and many workers who make up the backbone of our society, including firefighters, teachers/school system employees, restaurant workers, childcare workers, and many others.
