The current president and executive director of the Maryland Association of Counties (MACo) met with the Calvert County Commissioners Friday, April 29 to provide a post mortem on the recently completed 2014 session of the Maryland General Assembly.
Talbot County Councilman Tom Duncan [D] is currently serving as MACo president. He reminded the commissioners the association concerns itself with issues facing all of Maryland’s jurisdictions, avoiding any weigh-in on parochial matters. “It’s not about a single county,” said Duncan, who is not seeking reelection to the Talbot County Council. He commended the commissioners “for running for public office” and serving the public.
Michael Sanderson, MACo’s executive director, reported the 2014 session in Annapolis yielded “some good news, some not-so-good news” and a few issues that were left undone.
“We play a lot of defense,” said Sanderson of MACo’s work in Annapolis while the legislature is in session, which is often reacting to proposals that could have an adverse impact on counties fiscally. “Sadly, not having a terrible year makes for success.”
One recent negative that MACo officials had hoped to remedy the year—huge losses in highway user fees—was only partially successful. “The counties didn’t get a multi-year fix,” said Sanderson. However, the association did manage to secure $10 million for county-only pothole repairs. Noting the negative impacts this past winter had on Maryland’s roads, Governor Martin O’Malley [D] announced the funding would be available to counties during the current fiscal year. Calvert’s allocation is $229,397.
Another success was the leveraging of Chesapeake Bay Restoration Funds to target failing septic systems. The measure provides counties with an opportunity to fund the extension of public sewer to areas with failing systems. It was noted in a MACo synopsis of 2014 legislative initiatives that “the 2011 Task Force on Sustainable Growth and Wastewater Disposal supported the expansion provided there were safeguards against sprawl development occurring along the extension.”
One area that could cause counties additional heartburn is bail reform mandated by the state court’s DeWolfe v. Richmond decision. The ruling will require individuals charged with crimes be adequately represented by counsel during initial bail hearings. Counties may have to cover the costs for attorneys’ fees if that cost exceeds the state budget allocation.
According to MACo officials, the state is providing a limited source of funds–$10 million—to implement bail funding reform in fiscal year 2015. Sanderson called the state’s plan “a Band-Aid.”
Commissioner Susan Shaw [R] agreed the Maryland General assembly’s initial solution creates more problems for the counties. “When you talk about sending us the bill, where’s the money coming from?” Shaw asked.
“This funding arrangement is unprecedented for both the judiciary and the county governments, and we hope that this arrangement may be implemented in the least disruptive fashion possible,” Duncan stated in a letter to District Court of Maryland Judge Ben C. Clyburn. “Counties stand ready to offer guidance on how to best accomplish this.”
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
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