A lot of mail likely lands on Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott’s desk on a daily basis, but there was one recent letter that had us intrigued; it was sent by seven Republican members of the Maryland House of Delegates. As the nonprofit news site Maryland Matters reported, none of the signers actually live in Baltimore, and at least two of whom — Mark N. Fisher and Matt Morgan — live quite far away, in Calvert and St. Mary’s counties respectively, in Southern Maryland.

Last Thursday, the great tax hike battle of 2023 came to its dramatic conclusion as the county council raised property taxes by 4.7 percent. That followed the announcement of a large increase in impact taxes and the council’s vote to raise recordation taxes. The county has not substantially raised this many taxes at the same time since 2003. And there could be more next year.

 

The Montgomery County Council is slated to vote Thursday on a $6.7 billion operating budget built on a property tax increase for residential and commercial properties that galvanized debate over how best to meet the county’s growing needs and who should pay. The draft increase, which would take the weighted average real property tax rate to roughly $1.02 per $100 in assessed value from about $0.98, is less than half of that proposed in March by County Executive Marc Elrich.

Baltimore County residents will begin paying more for their water this summer. The Baltimore City Board of Estimates on Wednesday approved a 4.9% increase to water rates. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the average family of four uses 300 gallons a day, which comes out to 110,000 gallons a year.

The Baltimore County Council will vote Thursday whether to accept the 2023 Basic Services Map, a technical map that designates where public utilities can be built in the county. But while the county seems committed to implementing that plan, a local environmental group contends that the administration is ignoring warning signs about the sewer system’s inability to handle more wastewater generated by a growing population.

The population of Maryland and the United States is skewing older, new 2020 census data shows. Maryland’s median age of 38.8 — the same as the national median — is eight-tenths of a year higher than it was in 2010. The figures come from 2020 census data released Thursday. The Demographic Profile and Demographic and Housing Characteristics data, the third set of numbers released from the 2020 census, expands upon redistricting data released in 2021, including a more detailed look at age, sex, families, households and housing.

The Howard County Council added a competitive bidding process to access state funds for a new lakefront library in Columbia, a project for which the Howard Hughes Corp. had been selected. County officials revealed plans for the new library in March and said they expected it to become the community’s crown jewel. At 100,000 square feet, the library will cost around $144 million and will include other amenities such as an auditorium, a literacy classroom and a digital lab, officials said.

The world’s oldest sculpture is estimated to have been created about 40,000 years ago. Robert Perless’s “Monad” — a shiny metal blade 32 feet tall — is considerably newer. Perless made it in 1978 for Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg, Md. Will it stand the test of time? Forget 40,000 years. Some people worry “Monad” may not be around in four years. Lakeforest Mall closed at the end of March. Its new owners hope to redevelop the 100-acre site.

The U.S. House on Wednesday voted to overturn the Biden administration’s one-time student debt relief plan that is currently on hold awaiting a Supreme Court decision expected within weeks. Before the 218-203 vote on the resolution, the White House said President Joe Biden would veto it, arguing that the U.S. Department of Education has the legal authority to execute the one-time cancellation of up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt for borrowers who qualify, and that overturning the policy “would weaken America’s middle class.”

The Frederick County Council on Tuesday raised the threshold for the highest tax bracket in County Executive Jessica Fitzwater’s budget proposal for the next fiscal year. Under Fitzwater’s proposal, single status filers with a taxable income over $100,000 would receive a personal income tax rate of 3.2% compared to the current rate of 2.96%.