St. Mary's County commissioner warns of a ‘‘very, very difficult’’ budget season, urges spending cuts ahead of 1:30 p.m. public session

An unnamed St. Mary's County commissioner said Friday that the county is facing "a very, very difficult" budget season and urged officials to curtail spending, delay nonessential projects and avoid raising taxes. The speaker asked residents to tune in to a public work session or public budget session scheduled for 1:30 p.m.

The commissioner, who said they have a career in finance and contracts, framed the coming budget cycle as unusually tight and said the key will be ‘‘to look everywhere we can to curtail spending, to push things off as far as we can, and make sure that we are holding the line.’’ The remarks focused on fiscal priorities rather than specific line-item proposals or formal votes.

The speaker repeated that the county is not looking to increase taxes and emphasized maintaining current services rather than adding new projects. They described the upcoming meeting as the place for officials to outline the county's options and for the public to follow the discussion.

The remarks also included brief personal and community notes — attendance at a 4-H dinner, the 35th anniversary of Pastor McClanahan at First Missionary Baptist Church in Lexington Park, family activities and yard work — which were ceremonial rather than part of the budget discussion.

No motions, votes or formal actions on the budget were recorded in the transcript segment provided. The commissioner did not specify proposed cuts, departments affected, dollar amounts, or whether any changes would require state or federal approvals.