St. Mary's commissioners opt to use 4% income-tax growth assumption to narrow FY2016 deficit

St. Mary's County commissioners on March 17 agreed to instruct staff to revise the county's FY2016 income-tax revenue estimate from a 3 percent growth assumption to 4 percent, a change officials said would reduce the projected operating deficit by roughly $2.8 million.

Commissioner Hewitt (last name used in the transcript) urged the higher estimate, citing an 11-year trend of conservative budgeting that typically understates revenues. “I think that the trend has continually been that our delta is positive,” Hewitt said. After discussion, Hewitt said he would “go 4%,” and the board asked staff to incorporate the 4 percent figure into the recommended budget materials for next week.

County finance staff prepared alternate calculations showing the difference between 3 percent and 4 percent assumptions; the transcript records the commissioners discussing two finance sheets and resolving to use the 4 percent figure when staff re-run totals for the recommended budget. Commissioners who voiced caution during the discussion said they were reluctant to overstate revenues but agreed the board should plan for possible upside and keep some fund balance in reserve.

The adjustment to a 4 percent growth assumption was described in the meeting as direction to county staff to update the revenue estimates for the March 24 recommended-budget vote and subsequent public hearings. The transcript does not record a formal roll-call vote; commissioners reached verbal agreement and instructed staff to produce the updated figures.

Commissioners noted remaining budget choices — including potential personnel changes, fund balance uses and program adjustments — would be revisited during the public hearing process and when the board receives the fully reconciled recommended-budget package next week.