Bill Hearing / County News / Education / MACo Testimony
Counties Not Responsible for Income Tax Errors

MACo submitted written testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee with a proposed amendment to Senate Bill 428, "Tax Overpayment - Interest on Refunds". The bill would require the Comptroller to pay interest on tax refund claims at the end of a 45-day grace period, or from the date of an overpayment if there was an error on the part of the State. The fiscal note for this bill indicated that local revenues would…

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March 22, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / MACo Testimony / School Construction and Capital Budgets
Small Short-Term Maintenance Could Mean Large Long-Term Savings

MACo submitted written testimony in support of House Bill 403, "Community Colleges - Facilities Renewal Grant Program - Established", to the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee on March 21, 2018. The bill would provide grant funding for maintenance efforts at community colleges, including Baltimore City Community College. The program will fund small renovation projects focused on improving the learning environments at different community colleges throughout the State. The governor must appropriate 5% of the community…

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March 22, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / MACo Testimony / School Construction and Capital Budgets
Career and Tech Grants Stem the Tide on School Construction Funding

MACo submitted written testimony in support of Senate Bill 515, "Career and Technology Education and Workforce Investment Act", to the House Appropriations and Ways and Means Committees. This bill would established a grant program for career and technology education facilities, while also repealing certain spending mandates on scholarships by making them optional. Local jurisdictions would have to match the State input of the grant allotted by the governor up to $2 million. This affords counties…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / MACo Testimony / Taxes and Revenues
Rocky Tax Credit Implementation Needs Time Before Expansion

MACo submitted written testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee on March 20, 2018 in opposition to Senate Bill 427, "Property Tax Credit - Elderly Individuals and Veterans - Eligibility". This would expand a recently established property tax credit to all elderly individuals in a county over the age of 65 that have also lived there for 25 years. Currently, the credit only would apply to those over the age of 65 that have lived…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / Business Affairs / County News / MACo Testimony
Bill Strikes Balance Between Airbnb and Local Regulation

MACo Legislative Director Natasha Mehu testified in support of Senate Bill 1081, "Business Regulation – Limited Residential Lodging", before the Senate Finance Committee on March 20, 2018. SB 1081 ensures that limited residential lodging rentals are subject to local laws and regulation, and must also be registered with the Comptroller. Hosts of these rentals must also keep records to remain in good standing with the State. This legislation allows the industry to continue to thrive…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / Economic Development / Finance and Procurement / MACo Testimony
Economic Distress Transcends County Borders

Senate Bill 1104 would expand State economic development benefits to communities that share a zip code with distressed  economic areas that are currently eligible for the benefits. Local governments have a vested interest in ensuring that "distressed" areas receive aid in achieving long-term economic growth. Counties understand that these economically distressed areas are not limited by county lines, and this legislation takes that into account. MACo submitted written testimony in support of SB 1104, "Economic…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / Health and Human Services / MACo Testimony
Accurate Reporting Can Help Target Potential Overdoses

MACo submitted written testimony in support of Senate Bill 309, "Health – Reporting of Overdose Information", to the House Health and Government Operations Committee. After amendments in the Senate, the bill improves the ability of law enforcement and first responders to submit information about likely overdoses to the proper local, state, or federal platforms. As the opioid crisis continues to grip the State, it is critical that local authorities have effective and efficient ways of…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / Health and Human Services / MACo Testimony
Grants Bolster Services for Prenatal and Infant Care

House Bill 1685 establishes a grant program that would aid local government in the provision of care coordination, intervention, and services to low-income pregnant and postpartum women and children from birth to 3 years old. MACo submitted written testimony in support of HB 1685 to the House Health and Government Operations Committee on March 20, 2018. From MACo Testimony: The grant program helps local governments and their community-based partners to spearhead comprehensive, collaborative programs designed to…

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March 21, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / Health and Human Services / MACo Testimony
Dispensing Naloxone in Potential Overdose Situations=Common Sense

House Bill 1764 would allow paramedics and emergency medical services personnel to dispense naloxone to individuals that they believe to be at risk for an immediate overdose or would be in a position to respond to someone experiencing an overdose. It also would protect paramedics that dispense naloxone in good faith from cause of action. MACo submitted written testimony in support of HB 1764 to the House Health and Government Operations Committee on March 20,…

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March 20, 2018
Bill Hearing / County News / MACo Testimony / Taxes and Revenues
County Repayment Delay Passes House, Moves to Senate

House Bill 686 would implement a two-year delay of county repayments to the Local Income Tax Reserve Account that stems from the ruling in the Comptroller v. Wynne court case. It now moves to the Senate after already passing the House 137-0. With a yes vote from the Senate, this delay allows counties to continue to properly plan and take into account the impact that these repayments will have on their budgets, and subsequently their ability…

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March 20, 2018
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