TRIM - Lower Property Tax Rates
Citizens want tax accountability
Based on comments of Bradley Heard – Prince George’s Urbanist (April 9, 2015), the County property tax rate increases in 2015 are an alarm bell challenging the power of local elected leaders to override the will of the citizens. Bradley states, "In 1978 PG County residents passed TRIM, the Taxation Reform Initiative by Marylanders, an amendment to the county charter. TRIM codified the tax rate, and effectively froze it, as well as made it impossible for the county government to raise property taxes without a ballot initiative. There have been several attempts to repeal TRIM over the years, and every time the populace votes to maintain it. Clearly, the citizens of PG County do not want a tax increase, nor do they want their elected officials to be able to raise the property tax rate without voter approval.
More Money ≠ Better Schools
Based on Bradley Heard's April 9, 2015 report, the local elected leaders premise the need for tax increase is to ensure the school system budget will achieve educational success. However, Heard sees this as "dubious at best". He states, "According to data compiled by the Maryland State Department of Education, Prince George’s already pays its teachers higher than the statewide and national averages, and has higher per-pupil expenditures than the statewide and national averages, ranking within the top third of Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions in these areas."
Heard continues to make his cased based on data and comparative charts he compiled in his article for Prince George's Urbanist. He says, "The county’s overall education spending relative to its wealth is also well above the statewide averages. (Again, Prince George’s is not a “poor” county; it’s just not as wealthy as others in the Washington region.) So it can hardly be said that Prince George’s County is giving its public school students short shrift at its current funding levels.
Moreover, there are public school systems out there that are funded at much lower levels than Prince George’s, which nevertheless manage to perform exceptionally well. I am a product of one of those systems: the Virginia Beach City Public Schools. I use Virginia Beach as a comparator here because it has similar physical and wealth characteristics to Prince George’s County.
Both jurisdictions are geographically large bedroom communities, with similar population densities. They are both outside of and larger than their respective metropolitan region’s central city, and they are both principally suburban in character. Virginia Beach has a lower median household income and a slightly lower median home value."
As detailed in the chart the chart he provided, Virginia Beach has a significantly lower per-pupil expenditure rate than Prince George’s and also pays its teachers significantly less. Yet, it has higher student achievement levels, a higher on-time graduation rate, and a lower dropout rate:
Bradley Heard, in Price George's Urbanist (April 9, 2015) calculated the “effective real property tax rates” for 10 county-equivalent jurisdictions in the Washington, DC metropolitan region, as well as for his hometown of Virginia Beach, VA. He also calculated values for each jurisdiction’s assessable tax base per capita and per household.
In his study, he found that "Prince George’s current effective tax rate is $1.377 per $100 of assessed value. That includes a $0.96 base rate, plus $0.112 in mandatory state assessments, plus $0.305 in mandatory assessments for two bi-county agencies operating in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties: the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M–NCPPC) and the Washington Suburban Transit Commission (WSTC).
The additional mandatory environmental fees that Prince George’s charges for stormwater and solid waste management and watershed restoration are not included in the effective rate, because those fees are not assessed based on property value. This is essentially another end-run around the TRIM property tax cap because, in most other jurisdictions, these types of environmental costs are typically paid for out of the general property taxes collected.
Although Prince George's County is the wealthiest majority-black jurisdiction in the United States, it has the lowest assessable tax base in the Washington region, whether measured on a per capita or per household basis. That’s because the county has the lowest property values in the region—values that have sunk even lower in recent years, in the wake of the Great Recession and the ensuing foreclosure crisis. Prince George’s also has the lowest median household income of any suburban jurisdiction in the Washington region.
Prince George’s County has the worst wealth-to-tax rate balance of any suburban jurisdiction in the region. (The District of Columbia technically has a heavier overall wealth-to-tax burden; however, it shifts the bulk of that burden onto commercial property owners, not homeowners. That makes it somewhat of an anomaly in the region.)
High Tax Rate + Low Tax Base = A Bad Combination
Outreach Campaign Document
Help PG Citizens raise awareness and funds about the TRIM law suit and need to stand for lower property tax rates in Prince George's County. Canvass in your local area, door to door, or make a presentation at your local homeowners clubs or meetings. Share on social media as well. Download and distribute these documents in any way you like. Door to door canvassing is best.
Law Suit - To Uphold TRIM
Donate to the Cause
PG Citizens is raising money to pay for the legal case being pursued by two county homeowners. This case seeks to overturn the recent property tax rate increases imposed by the Prince George's County Executive and Council in violation of the TRIM provision of the County Charter. Go to the "donate" page and make your contribution to the fund there. DONATE
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Another local citizen group, Prince George's Tax Watch is also active in raising funds for this cause. Visit their website to find out about this organization.
