For Immediate Release: Tuesday, April 18, 2017
Montgomery County Council to receive
overview of FY18 operating budget
Also on Tuesday, April 18: Bethesda Downtown Plan,
healthy vending machines bill,
microlending bill, foreclosed property bill
ROCKVILLE, Md., April 17, 2017—The Montgomery County Council at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 18, will receive an overview of the County’s financial situation as the Council and its committees begin five weeks of reviews of County Executive Isiah Leggett’s recommended Fiscal Year 2018 operating budget.
The Council is scheduled to tentatively approve the budget on May 18 and formally adopt it on May 25. The budget will go into effect on July 1.
The fiscal overview will be part of the Council’s regular weekly session that will begin at 9:30 a.m. the Third Floor Hearing Room of the Council Office Building at 100 Maryland Ave. in Rockville. The session, four public hearings scheduled to run consecutively beginning at 1:30 p.m. and a public hearing scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. on the proposed Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project for the U.S. Route 29 corridor, will be will be televised live by County Cable Montgomery (CCM). The channel can be viewed on Cable Channels 996 (high definition) and 6 (standard definition) on Comcast; Channels 1056 (HD) and 6 (SD) on RCN; and Channel 30 on Verizon.
The session also will be available live via streaming through the Council web site at http://tinyurl.com/z9982v8 . The meeting will be rebroadcast starting at 9 p.m. on Friday, April 21.
Council Administrator Steve Farber and Senior Legislative Analyst Jacob will present the overview of the FY18 operating budget.
The County Executive's recommended tax supported operating budget (including debt service) is $4.8 billion, up $126.4 million (2.7 percent) from the Council-approved FY17 budget. The total recommended budget (including grants and enterprise funds) is $5.4 billion, up $140.6 million (2.7 percent) over FY17. The FY 18 recommended budget assumes property tax revenue at the Charter Limit.
The overview notes that resident employment in 2016 was up 5,600 (1.1 percent) to 533,100. The average unemployment rate was 3.4 percent, the lowest in eight years, well below its peak of 5.6 percent in 2010, but above its low of 2.6 percent in 2007. The rate in February was 3.4 percent (compared to 3.6 percent one year ago).
The overview also states that sales of existing homes were up 5.8 percent to 12,896, compared to 13,494 in 2006 and 8,519 in 2008. The median home sales price was up 2.4 percent to $409,700 after being flat at $400,000 for three straight years, compared to $439,000 in 2006 and $340,000 in 2009. Construction of new residential units, which more than doubled in 2013 to 5,246 compared to 966 in 2009, fell 28.1 percent in 2016, the third straight down year. The construction of multi-family units fell 41.8 percent, while single-family units rose 17.8 percent.
The overview notes that the proposed federal budget could have a significant impact on federal employment and on the County economy.
The overview is available at http://tinyurl.com/lyejxow .
In its morning and afternoon sessions, the Council will hold worksessions on the proposed Bethesda Downtown Plan. Bethesda, located in southern Montgomery County, is a 451-acre urban area with 10,000 residents and some of the County's largest employers. With numerous restaurants, shops, art galleries and entertainment choices, it is a destination location and center of the County’s nightlife economy. The sector plan makes recommendations for development in Downtown Bethesda for the next 20 years.
The Council’s Planning, Housing and Economic Development (PHED) Committee has previously reviewed the plan, which was recommended by the County’s Planning Board. The PHED Committee has made numerous recommendations for the full Council to consider.
The Council is scheduled to vote during the morning session on proposed Bill 1-17 that would require all vending machines on County property to carry at least 50 percent of items that meet American Heart Association recommended nutrition standards for sugar, salt, fat and other measures. Councilmember George Leventhal is the lead sponsor of the legislation. Councilmembers Roger Berliner, Marc Elrich, Tom Hucker, Nancy Navarro, Craig Rice and Hans Riemer are co-sponsors.
Bill 49-16 also is scheduled for a vote during the morning session. That bill would create a County microloan program that would provide loans from $500 to $15,000 for County residents needing additional help to start small businesses. Council President Roger Berliner, along with Councilmembers Nancy Navarro and Tom Hucker, are the lead sponsors of the bill. Councilmembers Marc Elrich, Nancy Floreen, Sidney Katz, Craig Rice and Hans Riemer are co-sponsors of the bill.
The Council also is scheduled to vote on Bill 38-16 that would impose a civil penalty for failure to register a foreclosure purchase. The lead sponsor of the bill is Councilmember Hucker. Councilmembers Berliner, Elrich, Floreen, Leventhal, Navarro, Rice and Riemer are co-sponsors.
# # # # Release ID: 17-124