Greetings,

I'm pleased to provide you with another segment in the Greater Baltimore Committee's (GBC)  "In Their Words"  series as the June 2 Primary Election in Baltimore City draws near.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, campaigning has shifted to a virtual approach as widespread closures and physical distancing measures remain in place. For that reason, sharing information about the election with GBC members and Baltimore City residents has become even more vital.
 
The GBC does not endorse candidates; however, we are committed to inform voters about the upcoming election.

As part of that effort, the GBC began a series called "In Their Words." The series, which is now in its fifth week, has shared questionnaire responses of leading candidates for Mayor and City Council President. It has covered such topics as ethical leadership, public safety, workforce development, and transportation and mobility.

This week's edition highlights leading candidates' viewpoints on reforming Baltimore City's property tax structure. On Wednesday, we shared responses from leading Mayoral candidates on the important topic. Today, we share responses from leading candidates for City Council President with you.
 
Full questionnaire responses and other important details regarding the election can be found on the special  Baltimore City Election section  of our website as part of our election education outreach campaign.

We hope you find this installment of the series informative. Feel free to share the series with your networks. All prior editions can be found on our  website .
 
We encourage all city voters to vote in the June 2 election.
 
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at  donaldf@gbc.org .
 
Be safe, stay healthy and positive.
 
Sincerely,
Donald C. Fry
Donald C. Fry
President & CEO
Policy Priority

Implement strategic and inclusive economic development strategies to attract and retain businesses and residents.

Question: Do you have ideas or suggestions to reform the property tax structure in the City?

  • "Separating the property tax and waste disposal costs, allowing for a (8.7%) property tax reduction for owner occupied properties and non-owner occupied properties.
• Offering tax credit portability for homes purchased in the City.
• Offering property tax reductions for police officers, first responders and municipal employees who purchase homes in the City."

"Baltimore City's current real property tax rate of $2.25 per $100 of assessed value is double that of any other county in Maryland. When you hold up that tax rate in light of the high crime rate, rising water bills, struggling schools, etc. it would make one question what's the justification for remaining in the city. Many are answering in the negative by exercising their right to leave Baltimore and relocate to other parts of the region. This flight needs to be reversed and reducing the property tax rate is just one component of that. In 2011 Mayor Stephanie Rawlings Blake initiated a plan to reduce the tax rate by 20 cents by 2020. While that effort was admirable it was still inadequate to stem the population loss that Baltimore has been experiencing and spur any major increase of new residents. Greater reductions to the real property tax rate need to be considered while exploring new revenue streams that will reduce the city's fiscal dependence on property taxes (which currently makes up nearly a third of the city's revenues). A couple efforts that are long overdue and need to be explored immediately by the city are how we handle vacant and blighted properties and the financial drain that they place on the city. Just down the road, the DC government institutes a higher assessment on vacant properties than they do for inhabited ones. They raised the property tax rate for commercial properties from $1.65 to $5 for $100 in assessed value for vacant property and to $10 per $100 of assessed value for blighted property. While just up the road through their anti-blight legislation, the City of Philadelphia is making great strides in revitalizing communities and returning vacant dilapidated properties to the tax rolls. These efforts would incentivize more development activity in communities throughout the city."

"As you know, Baltimore City has a high property tax rate. I would suggest that the City to have a share of the gambling revenue that will come from sports betting. Another is allowing the City to implement taxes on legalized marijuana. Those revenues could then possibly be used to provide property tax relief, barring that other vital needs are being met.
 
I am also in favor of studying the impact of switching from a flat income tax rate to a progressive rate. The Baltimore Sun editorial board also proposed this idea in their December 10th issue of the Sun."

"I propose to lead a comprehensive review of Baltimore City's variety of tax incentives and credits. As I understand it, there could be over $40 million in new credits being created at the City Council and in Annapolis. Our mix of high property taxes combined with a host of credits and incentives leads to a confused marketplace where only insiders with the best information can succeed. Tax policy in Baltimore City has to do three things, all while generating sufficient revenue to govern the city: encourage people to move here, make sure the people already here stay, and incentivize equitable investment. Sure, I would love to see us do what other cities have done – cut property taxes significantly to boost investment and population. But at the moment, the cost of ownership is not one of our most urgent problems. The urgent problems are a high homicide rate, public corruption, and a city government neither businesses nor residents trust to get things done. Cutting the price of this product is no guarantee that more people will want to buy it. We need to fundamentally right the ship first. And we need to review our long-term obligations, in particular, school funding as called for by the Kirwan Commission. Then we can make targeted, strategic choices on tax policy to deliver results on the three things I listed above – moving here, staying here, investing here."

"I am the only councilperson who has introduced legislation on a comprehensive package of property tax reform for Baltimore in the last two decades. The package was shelved by the City Council leadership and never saw the light of day. I lobbied my colleagues at the time but could not get enough support to bring the legislation to a hearing and vote. I will forward the entire comprehensive package upon request."
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