All three major rating agencies affirmed Baltimore County’s creditworthiness despite fiscal challenges Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski recently announced that Baltimore County has retained its triple-A bond rating from all three major rating agencies, allowing the county to continue to issue bonds at the lowest possible interest rate, saving millions of dollars for Baltimore County taxpayers. According to a press release: Moody’s Investor Service, Fitch Ratings, and S&P Global Ratings have each affirmed the county’s…

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…

Kevin Kinnally, MACo's Associate Director, offered testimony on Wednesday to oppose two bills representing state-mandated reductions in local revenue sources. HB 114 increases the maximum amount of a subtraction modification under the State income tax of certain individuals for retirement income attributable to specific professions. HB 204 allows a subtraction modification under the State income tax for income from a qualified transfer of stock or membership interest of a Maryland corporation or limited liability company…

Among the 45 states that levy sales taxes, Maryland ranks 34th for its per capita sales tax collections, according to a recent analysis by the Tax Foundation. Maryland's sales and use tax is 6 percent. State sales taxes apply to purchases made in Maryland while the use tax refers to the tax on goods purchased out of state. The State collected $762 in sales tax per capita in FY 2017. The Department of Legislative Services estimates…