Today I received Governor O’Malley’s proposed budget for FY 2013.

The governor’s proposed budget aims to eliminate Maryland’s $1.8 billion structural deficit by FY 2015 by proposing more than $650 million in cuts and generating $311 million in new general fund revenue, $104 million in redirected revenue, and $78 million in revenue from the anticipated extension of the federal payroll tax cut.

The budget we received today appears to call for some very significant changes, including but not limited to:

• halving the $2,400 personal exemption for individuals declaring income of $100,000 to $125,000 annually, and for families making $150,000 to $175,000 (above those amounts, there would be no baseline exemptions);
• increasing the tax on cigars to put it at the same rate as cigarettes;
• cutting the subsidy Maryland gives the coal mining industry, a move which I have vocally supported;
• assessing household fees for the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund funding (the so-called “flush tax”) based on actual water consumption and not as a flat fee;
• and shift a portion of the cost of public school teachers’ pensions onto County governments.

As you may have seen reported in the news recently, our state budget likely will be one of the most contentious issues before the General Assembly this year, and I will be working closely with my colleagues in the Montgomery County delegation to continue to fight for our community’s needs in this difficult fiscal climate. As always, I remain

Very truly yours,
Sam Arora