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St. Mary's County commissioners direct staff to pilot zero-based budgeting and tighten CIP approvals
Summary
Commissioners gave staff direction to pilot zero-based budgeting (ZBB), consider pooled vacancy budgeting and hold new capital projects to a two-step approval process that requires design/development cost estimates before adding items to the five-year CIP.
St. Mary's County commissioners on Tuesday directed county finance and public-works staff to develop a pilot for zero-based budgeting (ZBB) and to change capital-improvement project (CIP) approvals so new projects undergo design and development cost estimates before appearing in the five-year plan.
The commissioners discussed ZBB during a Department of Finance presentation led by Director Vanetta Van Cleef. Van Cleef told the board, “What is zero-based budgeting? Every expense must be justified for each new period starting from a zero base,” and said the approach would require line-by-line justification rather than inflating prior budgets.
Supporters said ZBB could increase transparency and make spending align more closely with county priorities. Van Cleef and staff outlined pros including clearer priority setting…
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