Del. Beitzel Proposes Amendment To "Lock Down" Chesapeake Bay Fund
Jan. 26, 2012
With the likelihood that the General Assembly will be asked to double, triple, or even quadruple fees paid by Maryland’s citizens for Chesapeake Bay cleanup, Del. Wendell Beitzel filed House Bill 121. The bill would amend the Maryland State Constitution to prohibit, or “lock down,” the transfer of funds from the two major sources of revenue for bay cleanup efforts in the state.
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The Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund was established in 2004 for the purpose of providing funds for bay cleanup, wastewater treatment plant upgrades, cover crop funds, and septic system upgrades. One of the sources of funding is an annual fee, which has popularly been called the “flush tax.”
“Each year, Maryland’s citizens are required to pay for cleanup of the Chesapeake Bay,” Beitzel said. “This bill simply provides that if citizens are told that the fees they are paying are dedicated for bay restoration, then government should be required to use the funds only for this purpose.”
During the 2011 General Assembly session, Gov. Martin O’Malley’s budget transferred $290 million from the Bay Restoration Fund and the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays’ 2010 Trust Fund into the state’s general fund. The funds are to be replenished with general obligations bonds, which require additional interest costs and limits the amount of bond funds available for other state capital projects, according to Beitzel.
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Dates For 2012 Winter Fest Are Announced
Jan. 26, 2012
The fifth annual Oakland Winter Fest celebration will be held Feb. 17 to 19, as announced this week. Sponsors are currently being sought to help fund the ice sculptures that will be carved on site throughout the town for the weekend celebration of winter.
Volunteers are also needed to help with the events of the weekend, which will include live ice sculpting by professional ice artist Bill Sandusky, a progressive dinner on Friday, Feb. 17, and ice games on Saturday such as ice bowling and a snowman building contest. If the weather is right, a snowmobile race will also take place.
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Jim Johnson is heading up the event, assisted by several individuals, including Ray Miller, who will provide horse-drawn sleigh rides and who assists in planning the progressive dinner, the traditional kick-off event. Participants will depart from the town’s new Transportation Museum for the first course of the meal, and have each course at a different locale.
Lillian Steele is organizing vendors for the event, and Regina Gearhart is serving as the event treasurer. Flyers are being distributed with detailed information, and more information will be published as the event nears. There will be a bonfire, a Snowflake Toddler contest, and many other events.
To offer assistance or to sponsor a sculpture, persons are asked to contact Johnson at 301-334-3352 or 301-616-4008.
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Governor's Proposed FY '13 Budget
Jan. 26, 2012
Gov. Martin O’Malley presented his proposed fiscal year 2013 budget for the state of Maryland last Wednesday. As predicted by local officials and lawmakers, the document includes reductions in state aid to Garrett County, particularly in the area of education.
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Total aid to local government is a proposed $31.95 million (including retirement payments for the Board of Education, Ruth Enlow Library, and Garrett College personnel). This is $2.625 million, or 7.6 percent, less than for FY 2012.
The governor’s budget calls for a 9.9 percent, or $2.264 million, decrease for local primary and secondary education funding, which includes allocations for special education and student transportation. This cut is mainly the result of an increase in the county’s wealth (based on a state formula) and a decrease in student population.
O’Malley also plans to cut state aid for local teacher retirement by 1.9 percent, or $914,000. The total loss in state aid for local primary and secondary education, therefore, is a proposed 11.8 percent, or $3.178 million, compared to FY ’12.
Garrett County will not be alone in its loss. Entities across the state will be asked to begin paying for their educators’ retirements.
“Among the tough choices in the FY 2013 budget is sharing teachers’ retirement costs with local governments,” the O’Malley administration states in the budget document. “Currently, the state pays the entire cost of teacher pensions, totaling $946 million in FY 2013. Teacher salaries, the key cost driver of pension costs, are determined by local jurisdictions.”
O’Malley’s proposal requires locals to pay 50 percent of the combined costs of Social Security and teachers’ retirement contributions. Local entities currently pay for Social Security only, which accounts for one-third of the combined costs.
“The administration is proposing several measures to mitigate the impact of this cost shift, including increasing local revenue, enhancing aid to less wealthy jurisdictions, and providing targeted budget relief,” the budget plan states.
The proposed budget lists $3.756 million for Garrett College. This includes direct aid, unrestricted grants, and optional/state retirement. The FY 2013 allocation would be $20,000 more than the previous year’s.
Local libraries are slated to receive $119,000 in state aid, plus $72,000 for personnel retirement payments.
O’Malley’s capital budget includes $122,000 for the Loch Lynn Community Park Trail Project, $95,000 for Oakland’s Glades Park Path Extension/Fence Repair Project, $260,000 for the Grantsville Waterline Extension Project, and $300,000 for Oakland Water System improvements.
Funding for Department of Natural Resources’ development projects includes $150,000 for the planning phase of trail construction in local state parks; $150,000 for the planning phase of the Western Maryland Recreational Access and Trail Restoration Project in Garrett County; $20,000 for new roofs for Bear Creek Fish Hatchery Wildlife Management buildings; $15,000 for cabin chimney renovations at Herrington Manor State Park; $500,000 for cabin renovations, $15,000 for new fuel dispensers, and $30,000 to stabilize the nature center foundation at New Germany State Park; $37,000 to renovate the exterior of the Savage River State Forest office; and $15,000 to renovate the office/store at Swallow Falls State Park.
Under “Miscellaneous,” the proposed budget shows $437,000 in local health grants, $2.538 million in disparity grants, and $76,000 for local Program Open Space projects.
More here.
Buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland? Call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! I take great pride in referrals, and I assure you, I will take great care of your friends, family & colleagues!
Myers’ bill revives a BOE battle
Kristin Harty Barkley Cumberland Times-News
CUMBERLAND — Little Orleans parents lost several battles last year in the fight to keep their children in Washington County schools — first to the Allegany County Board of Education, then to a circuit court judge, then to the Maryland State Board of Education, which rejected an appeal.
But the war isn’t over yet. The latest skirmish is taking place before the General Assembly in Annapolis.
On Monday, Delegate LeRoy Myers Jr. introduced a bill that would allow children in Maryland to attend public school in an adjoining county if they live more than 30 miles away from the closest school in their home county, with the home county providing funding.
House Bill 335 drew immediate criticism from local school officials, who voted to end the decade-old Washington County School Choice program last summer because of budget concerns.
In an email on Tuesday, Superintendent David Cox asked other members of the Western Maryland Delegation — Sen. George Edwards and delegates Kevin Kelly and Wendell Beitzel — to oppose the bill, saying it would be “further financially devastating.”
Both Allegany and Garrett county school systems have lost a significant amount of state funding because of declining enrollment and other factors. Last year, state funding for Allegany was cut by around $5.3 million, and the governor’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2013 includes $4.3 million in cuts.
For the last decade — ever since consolidation closed Flintstone School — about 40 Little Orleans children have attended middle and high school in Hancock, which is geographically closer than Cumberland. But last spring, the board voted to phase out the program, while allowing about 20 high school students to finish their education in Hancock. Another 20 middle school students were not included in the grandfather clause, prompting a group of about three dozen families to file a lawsuit against the Allegany BOE.
In August, Allegany County Circuit Court Judge Tom Leasure denied a temporary injunction to allow middle school students to continue attending Hancock, saying that long bus rides to school did not “constitute irreparable injury.”
During months of turmoil over the issue, Myers announced that he intended to file legislation to address the problem, allowing students to attend school in an adjoining county if it is closer.
Myers filed the bill as a statewide bill — not an Allegany County bill — so it doesn’t need the support of a majority of the Western Maryland Delegation. The bill has been assigned to the House Ways and Means Committee.
Kelly said he doesn’t believe the bill will gain much momentum, adding that he expects opposition from the Maryland State Board of Education, the Maryland Association of Boards of Education, and the Maryland Superintendent’s Association.
Edwards and Beitzel couldn’t be reached Tuesday for comment.
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“I haven’t spoken to LeRoy about it at all, nor did I expect to,” Kelly said. “If the bill would come out of committee, which would be somewhat surprising, I would not support the legislation.”
Contact Kristin Harty Barkley at kbarkley@times-news.com
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Garrett County saving money thanks to lower premium
Liability insurance costs drop 18 percent
For the Cumberland Times-News Cumberland Times-News
OAKLAND — Garrett County government is paying a lower liability insurance premium this fiscal year, resulting in a $98,639 savings to county departments.
The annual premium decreased by 18 percent from the previous year, the county commissioners announced in a news release Tuesday.
The Local Government Insurance Trust, the county’s liability insurer, offers longevity and loss control credits toward the annual premium. The trust also offered for the first time a $1 million limit for excess liability at no additional charge. This saved the county $8,000 on the annual premium.
Liability claims and losses have been down for all county departments, which contributes to the decease of the premiums, the commissioners said.
Garrett County has been a member of the trust’s self-insurance program since 1987. The trust was founded by the Maryland Association of Counties and Maryland Municipal League to assist local governments with securing affordable insurance.
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Kayaking In January?
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A flash of color caught the eye of John Bambacus, Friendsville, while he was hiking along the Youghiogheny River just south of Friendsville on Saturday, and to his surprise he observed three kayakers ignoring the frigid temperatures and enjoying the elevated water levels of the Yough. He captured one of them “on film” with his cellphone. The unusual weather conditions for January in Garrett County continue, with warmer than normal temperatures and far less than normal snowfall. Winter, which seemingly has hardly begun, will likely begin to wind down within the next six weeks or so. Of course, the proverbial ground hog of Punxsutawney, Pa., may present a different forecast next Thursday…
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Brinkley: Western Maryland wants responsible spenders in Congress
Originally published January 31, 2012
By Bethany Rodgers
News-Post Staff
As congressional candidate in a district that ranges from the hills of Garrett County to the tech corridor along I-270,–Maryland Sen. David Brinkley said he has found something that ties everyone together: dismay over federal spending.
“The common denominator they all have is a concern about federal government spending sucking the economy dry,” he said.
The same concern propelled him to run for the 6th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Republican legislator from New Market said national debt and bloated government spending isn’t a new problem, but it’s one that keeps getting worse.
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Buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland? Call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! I take great pride in referrals, and I assure you, I will take great care of your friends, family & colleagues!
Proposed Doubling Of Flush Tax Worries Some Legislators
Jan. 26, 2012
by Ellen Stodola
Capital News Service
ANNAPOLIS – A number of legislators are concerned that Gov. Martin O’Malley’s proposal to raise the flush tax from $2.50 to $5 a month to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay could be too much for constituents to handle, especially in a bad economy.
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The flush tax, which raises funds for updates of wastewater treatment plants, as well as septic systems and stormwater management, costs each household a total of $30 a year. But O’Malley’s proposal for the Bay Restoration Fund ties the fee to consumption, with $5 being the average that most people will pay per month. Those who use less water could pay less, but high-volume users could pay upwards of $60 a year.
Though many legislators agree that the Chesapeake Bay is a priority, they also have to consider what this would mean for Maryland residents.
“Believe me, I’m on the side of cleaning the bay up,” said Delegate Jay Jacobs, R-Kent. “But it’s going to be a very difficult year for me to vote for any increase.”
More here.
Buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland? Call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! I take great pride in referrals, and I assure you, I will take great care of your friends, family & colleagues!
411 FAIRWAY DR - GOLF COURSE - GA7710842 - $249,000
411 FAIRWAY DR
OAKLAND, MD 21550
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Contact Jay Ferguson @ 301-501-0420 or DeepCreekLaker@Gmail.com for more information or to setup a private showing for this property.
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Garrett County, Md., officials consider aiding financially strapped whitewater course
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
First Posted: January 30, 2012 – 1:16 am
Last Updated: January 30, 2012 – 1:16 am
OAKLAND, Md. — Elected officials in far western Maryland are considering whether Garrett County should take an active role in helping a financially strapped, man-made whitewater course.
The Garrett County Commissioners were set to meet in a closed session Monday to discuss the problems of the nonprofit Adventure Sports Center International near McHenry. They say they’ll make a public announcement Feb. 7.
The center’s operators acknowledged earlier this month that they have defaulted on bank loans, partly due to the financial problems of the group that owns the nearby Wisp ski resort.
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