December 4, 2008

The Montgomery County Commissioners just released our proposed budget for 2009 which we will approve on December 22.  There is a strong dose of reality throughout the budget document as we tightened our belt several notches to deal with flat real estate tax revenues, increased expenses and, of course, a stock market in the tank.

But as we took a number of difficult budgetary steps to keep our fiscal house in order, we are also taking steps - with hope and confidence  - that will lead to county investments next year in transportation projects and economic development that will create jobs and improve our quality of life.

We successfully met our primary budget goals that we set forth last June:  no tax increase, no employee layoffs, no reduction of our top AAA bond rating while maintaining our excellent county services.  We achieved this by actually cutting last year's spending levels by $2.5 million and our employee complement by 20 jobs.  These are small reductions in a county budget of $480 million and 3,200 jobs, but reductions none the less.  We eliminated three departments and will absorb those employees into vacant positions in other offices in the county.  We provided a modest salary increase and delayed it to the first pay period in April, and reduced health benefit costs by promoting HMO use.  We have significantly reduced our appropriations to outside agencies and dipped into our reserve funds, while maintaining the recommended reserve level of 10% of revenues.

These are difficult choices that reduce or eliminate funding for some established programs and ask our valued employees to do more with less.  But more difficult choices lie ahead, as our pension fund is buffeted by the bad stock market and budget realities for 2010 look no easier than 2009.

But if we are content to stand still,  we will actually lose ground.  We must act hopefully and prudently to invest in our future.  Montgomery County is blessed with abundant human and financial resources, including a lightly tapped borrowing capacity that allows us to envision our own economic recovery package.  We will always be subjected to the ups and downs of the national and regional economy, and we must always maintain under state law a balanced county budget with an affordable level of debt servicing.  But it is time to use our resources to promote revitalization of our older communities and downtowns and to fight traffic congestion by fixing the bottlenecks and obsolete intersections in our road network. 

The county commissioners recently received a transportation funding plan from our Planning Commission that proposes a $150 million funding program over 10 years to improve traffic capacity and reduce congestion on our roads.  Next week we expect to receive a report from our Economic Development Task Force recommending a $105 million economic development fund to be used over 7 years to fund revitalization and redevelopment projects.  This county investment would spur our local economy, create jobs, ease the daily commute and improve life in the county.  I will report soon on the steps the commissioners decide to take to implement these creative proposals.

The bottom line:  there is hope in Montgomery County government, despite our tough budget, the rough economy and the lousy stock market.  There is hope that we can use our own resources to improve the quality of our lives and control our own destiny.  There is hope that our new national administration under the strong leadership of Barack Obama will send new federal support our way that we must be ready to capture and use for the common good.

As you know from my earlier newsletters, it is a new day in Montgomery County.  A new day in politics and a new day in government.

And if you have any good ideas - new or old - please share them with me!

Sincerely,