Aldermanic Responses to The Gazette's Election Series, Topic 3
Shelley Aloi (R)
I fully support reducing the property tax rate and will work toward that goal by emphasizing and expanding our focus on economic development to strengthen and diversify the tax base. Specifically, we must (1) fine-tune language in the Land Management Code to maximize efficiency in the developmental-permitting processes; (2) develop public-private partnerships to ease the tax burden on citizens; (3) examine additional incubators to encourage innovative business solutions and attract start-up businesses to our community. In addition to these efforts, we must increase other revenue sources by examining legislation to ensure tax equity along with a strong commitment to seek our fair share of state and federal resources. With these priorities guiding our approach, cost savings would then involve a careful line-by-line examination of each item to eliminate unnecessary expenses, duplication of services and wasteful spending through a process that is both transparent and accountable to the citizens of Frederick
Bill Ashton (R)
I would support a tax decrease if possible; I have several areas I have in mind to start to cut however it would not be a substantial amount. If elected I would request a summary from all departments and evaluate them, and then I can be better prepared to state what items I would advocate to cut.
George Bauer (R)
With the current economic downturn in relation to property values, I believe we're going to be facing huge budget shortfalls in the next two years. As such, we will need to cut back on frivolous spending projects such as repairing the swinging bridge and the regional park projects. Small, community-based projects like the swinging bridge should be funded by public/private partnerships. Larger expenditure projects like the regional park should be postponed until funding becomes available.
In order to lower our taxes in a fiscally responsible manor, our city's leadership needs to focus their time and energy on projects that provide our city with annual revenue streams. Projects like the Monocacy Business Park do this. If we focus our energy and slash through the red tape, we can get another tech business park built by 2012. We can then discuss lowering taxes in a responsible manner.
Josh Bokee (D)
There is no doubt that the city property tax burden must be reduced.
If the situation was static, and we could trust historic tax revenue figures and the stability of the State and County budgets, I would be in favor of a 2-cent reduction. However, State and County budget cuts and lower revenue estimates will create a ripple effect for the City. Certain expenses will continue to rise including future pension/benefits liabilities.
I don't want to promise something I wish to do, only to have the economy make that impossible. We need to reevaluate at year's end to determine what degree taxes could be cut. We must prioritize core services (police, infrastructure maintenance, economic development) and make difficult choices beyond that.
Determine the feasibility of combining with the County certain city departmental functions. Evaluate the strengths/weaknesses of a proposed tax differential system on individual tax rates and overall city revenues.
Bob Cassidy (R)
A reduction of two or three cents in the property tax rate would not be the only loss of revenue, there are also declining property values, requests for reassessments, and fewer housing starts to consider. I would support a cut in the tax rate by as much as the city could afford. City residents are being taxed twice already, first by the county then by the city, in some cases paying twice for the same services or paying for services not used. I would postpone projects that weren't absolutely necessary, and delay capital expenditures. I would support not raising elected officials pay.
John Daniels (D)
I would hold the tax rate to a constant yield so taxes do not increase with higher assessments. It is important to note that because property taxes represent half of our city revenue, and we cut the projected revenue by holding the tax rate to constant yield, we will have to either decrease spending or find other revenue sources. It is also worth noting that tax equity with the county will be declining over future years due to reductions in county spending, and we will continue to have additional cuts in SHUR (state highway user revenues) funding.
How do we make up for the loss of revenue? Go to a zero-based budget, justifying the need and benefit of every line on the operating budget. Triage the CIP's, cutting or postponing lower priority projects. Declare a moratorium on additional debt. Aggressively pursue federal and state grants.
Amanda Haddaway (R)
There will already be less tax revenue from properties next year because of the decrease in real estate values at the current tax rate. Rather than make a promise I'm not sure I can keep, I propose that we revamp the way we conduct the budget process and our overall thinking on government spending. For too long, there has been a "use it or lose it" mentality where programs are only funded at the same level next year if all of the money is spent this year. Instead, we should require each department to submit a budget with the amount of money that they need to operate efficiently. The Mayor and BoA must review each line item and determine whether or not the request is a legitimate expenditure. We have a responsibility to City taxpayers to ensure that their money is spent judiciously.
David "Kip" Koontz (D)
In the past four years I have voted to reduce the city tax rate by 4-cents and proposed an additional tax benefit for local seniors. I will continue to advocate for both while ensuring we are not compromising services to our citizens. We must push for greater tax equity from the county as we pay too much for duplicate services for which they don't equally or fairly re-imburse city residents.
Andrew Kotkin (D)
If we reduce the rate, we would have to look at cutting services. As we have seen in the last budget, they have been cut to the bare minimum. We can't afford any more cuts without reducing our quality of life. I would like to how to increase our revenue outside of increasing taxes.
The City would benefit more from commercial/business development, than residential. I would look at the Keys contract and make it work for our mutual benefit, not theirs alone. I would like to look at the parking situation and explore increasing the rates at our decks. We have very reasonable rates right now and a slight increase would not deter from their use. There are options out there and I don't know them all, however they should be explored by the next MBOA before any more pressure is put on the City taxpayer.
Carol Krimm (D)
I will reduce the property tax burden for Frederick's property owners whenever possible. I am the candidate who appeared before the Board of County Commissioners to challenge their decision to reduce the city's tax equity reimbursement this year. As a result the city did get more of that funding reimbursed.
The current economic climate dictates that all of us tighten our belts including all levels of government. The state is experiencing declining revenues that will likely involve cuts to local government. We do not know what the situation will be for the next fiscal year.
I will promise voters that the statutory procedure for obtaining our tax equity reimbursement from the county will be followed. This procedure has never been followed in Frederick although it has been state law since 1999 and is why all of our tax equity reimbursement was originally cut by the county this year.
Donna Kuzemchak (D)
It is much harder to look at the budget and come up with concrete ways to cut taxes than just say you're going to. I have voted to cut taxes numerous times over the past 12 years. We are already seeing savings by expansion of recycling and I expect even greater savings as the city continues to move toward green building practices. Commercial/business properties pay more in taxes than they receive in services, so expanding economic development is a sure way to reduce taxes. Working with State Government to ensure 'tax equity' is really equal would go a long way to ensure city residents don't pay double taxes when they don't get double services (The county doesn't pay for its fair share of police, recreation, or roads and should be reimbursing city residents for those services.)
Michael O'Connor (D)
Even without reducing the tax rate, Frederick will be dealing with declining revenues as the effects of the national economy continue to flow downhill to local governments. We must be persistent in aligning available resources with the services residents require and want, like police and code enforcement. I especially want to look at ways to hold our older and long-time residents harmless from changes in assessments. Connected to this is the tax equity issue. Our residents pay county taxes for services provided by the city. The county's reimbursement to the City should not be optional. An alternative approach is tax differential. The county tax rate in municipalities would actually be lowered providing a direct benefit to residents. This approach will reduce the tax burden on city residents, which is a top priority for me. Small business growth will be essential to expanding our tax base.
Kelly Russell (D)
Rather than a implement a few cent reduction in taxes, it's critical that we first resolve the problem of double taxation/tax equity. As city residents, we pay both city and county taxes, but the county does not provide the city with some services: police, planning, and parks. The formula used to determine "reimbursement" is inadequate, and we lose money. We need to adjust the formula to provide a more equitable payment to the city, or implement a tax structure so city residents would not pay the county for services it doesn't provide. This would lower the tax burden on our residents without cuts to services. We must also maximize our revenue generators. For example, Clustered Spires Golf Course hosts about 48,000 rounds annually. County residents should pay higher fees. A price increase of $5.00 for county residents for just 24,000 rounds (half the annual), would generate an additional $120,000.00.
John W. Shupe (R)
The problem is not the city taxes it is the County taxes. The Mayor and Board of Aldermen are allowing the County Commissioners to hold the people of our city hostage by over taxing us. I am told that 53% of the County budget goes for schools. If this is true why do we have children learning in trailers while the School Board spends 18 million dollars to build an office building for themselves. I believe our kids should come first. We should be building. It is clear that the School Board is not financially capable of handling the tax payer's money. We need a new Mayor and a new BOA to hold them accountable for their spending. We need to cut taxes that city residents pay to the county by 25%. I know once in office we can make the budget work.
C. Paul Smith (R)
If there's any reasonable way to cut our tax rate and balance the budget, I will support it, but this does not appear likely for FY2011. The City cut approximately $2.5 million in non-essential services and expenditures in the FY2010 Budget. Few additional cuts can be made in FY2011. Most of the City's budget is for salaries, retirement pay and benefits. During the last ten years employee and retiree benefits increased in cost from 30% of employee/retiree pay to over 60% today. The City will have to reverse this trend and change insurance plan options in order to avoid raising taxes. The City will also have to address benefits for future retirees. Dramatic increases in employee/retiree benefits costs is not related to or caused by the ERIP "buyout," which saved the City more than $1 million in FY 2010 and is still projected to bring long-term savings to the City.
Karen Young (D)
Before determining if the tax rate can be lowered, and to what level, we must review the budget for potential savings and anticipate how decreased assessments might affect property tax revenues. Some recommendations for budget reduction are: right-sizing city government by restructuring to meet current needs and priorities; eliminating all but essential positions that benefited from the buyout; reducing administrative support; redesigning the benefits and retirement packages for new employees and increasing recycling efforts with the end-goal of a reduction in garbage pick-up. Revenue-generating opportunities include expediting economic development efforts, aggressively pursuing grants and increasing efforts to promote public-private partnerships. We must also negotiate a more equitable tax reimbursement arrangement with the county for city residents. A transition from "tax equity" to "tax differential" would require the county to directly credit city taxpayers by lowering their tax rate for services that the county does not provide for municipalities.
Email Erica L. Green at egreen@gazette.net.
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