Washington County officials discussed proposed language to codify the county’s current tax-sale notification practices, including online advertising and a reduction in required newspaper notices.

Treasurer Matt Breeding, who leads county tax-sale administration, told the committee the county is required by law to conduct tax sales but that his proposal would codify current practices — chiefly advertising tax-sale properties online to mirror practices in other counties and to reduce duplicative newspaper costs. He said his office currently does extensive outreach, including mailed reminder notices, email reminders and certified letters in addition to newspaper advertisements.

Several members pushed back on reducing print notices. One committee member cited an ongoing lawsuit in Baltimore that challenges online tax-sale procedures and argues that online-only notifications can disadvantage low-income property owners who lack internet access; the member said the county should not reduce protections while that litigation is pending. Treasurer Breeding responded that Washington County holds in-person sales and that the county’s redemption rates have increased in recent years (cited as 71% in 2022, 84.9% in 2023 and 94.9 last year), which he attributed in part to the in-person process and to the county’s broad notification practices.

Breeding said he had studied the return on investment for multiple newspaper advertisements and found limited benefit to additional print ads beyond two insertions; he proposed aligning Washington County with other jurisdictions that run two print ads rather than four. He also said he would provide members a spreadsheet showing other counties’ practices.

Committee members asked for documentation and for the drafted language (“blueback”) before taking further action. No formal vote or ordinance was adopted during the meeting; staff said drafts will circulate to the committee when available.

Ending: Staff will circulate draft language and supporting documentation (county comparisons and the cited spreadsheet) for member review before any vote.