Montgomery County approves 76¢ property tax rate; board adds 1¢ to school funding in 5-2 vote

The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors on April 21 adopted a real-estate tax levy of 76 cents per $100 of assessed value and approved allocating an additional penny of that rate to the school operating fund, a move the board said will add $1,244,860 to school funding for fiscal year 2025–26.

The action came after a work-session discussion of the county’s proposed $270,810,991 budget and a public-address period in which residents largely urged the board to raise revenue for schools. The budget resolution passed the board 5–2; Supervisors King and Fidzikowski voted no.

The extra penny, the board’s resolution states, increases advertised funding to the school operating fund from $152,255,875 to a total approved amount of $153,500,735. County staff and school officials told the board that the county’s proposed budget already includes $3,100,000 in additional county funding tied to the superintendent’s earlier “statement of need,” and the penny is meant to further support priorities the schools identified.

Several residents used the public-address period to urge the board to approve the increase. Sarah Jacob, a resident of District E, said, “I want to support the 1¢ per hundred dollar assessed value tax increase.” Dr. Derek Rountree, who identified himself from 2737 Old Fort Road, said he supported “the 1¢ rate increase in support of our special education, teacher retention, and student nutrition.” Anna Vijayan of District A, who identified herself as holding a Ph.D. in mathematics, presented calculations she said show the six-year average yearly tax increase would be about 1.4% if the penny is approved and urged the board to add the revenue to schools if other budget cuts cannot be found.

Board members debated the scope of the…