The $182 million budget does include a 6.5-cent property tax increase as well as a higher income tax rate —1.75 percent.
Commissioner Chip Bertino, who made the motion to adopt the budget, said that the process had been difficult, particularly for the county’s four newest commissioners, but that the final product did what needed to be done.
“Nothing can be gained by answering the unpleasant comments that have been made or by rehashing what has been written and televised about the commissioners’ work on this year’s budget,” Bertino said. “We need to move forward and we shall.”
The approved FY 2016 budget of $182,450,109 is more than $7 million less than the originally requested budget of $189.8 million but is still 2.5 percent higher than the FY 2015 budget. County leaders have spent the past month determining what cuts to make in the budget and deciding on a tax increase that would fund this year’s needs and maintain the county’s budget stabilization fund into the future.
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24 comments:
What is so wrong with teachers getting a pay increase??? Even a cost of living increase? The level and lack of support for education and educators around here is troubling to say the least.
Tax and spend.....
Start at the top CUT THE BOE FAT.. no classroom, sports or teachers should be touched
there is so much junk at the BOE its unbelievable... cut their pensions for future retires to start... Cut Cut Cut the Fat... there is a ton of it
Isn't Worcester County Superintendent salary $172,000.00/a year. And isn't Worcester County teachers 1/3rd of them salaries are in the $70,000.00.
Sounds like 188 days Salary for these positions is WAY above the "Norm". This is not common and they should quit being greedy!
The economy has not recovered, Obama quote " elections have consequences". Your looking at your " hope and change" few of those initial Obama voters are celebrating now. I remember well his inauguration and thinking, what ignorant idiots.
Welcome to the real world and the economy teachers! Raises have been non existent for the taxpayers for a number of years...
Start eliminating high paying jobs at the head office. I agree 188 day work for 188 days pay..at least your BOE does'nt have the let them eat cake mentality. The Wicomico BOE officials get free lunches, while kids get no textbooks!!! These bloated fools suck up all the tax dollars before it hits the classrooms
Everyone in Worcester likes to brag how low their property taxes. Sorry you want top schools you got to pay. It is only a mater of time before taxes increase to reflect the values in the county.
6:55 A couple of weeks ago Joe had a post that had the rankings of all the high schools in the country by state. If you had looked at that site you would have seen that all 3 high schools in Worcester County were ranked. Which meant they were in the top 50% in the State. The schools in the county are good quality schools. Yes teachers work hard and deserve to be adequately paid (which they are for this area). Do they deserve a raise? Probably. Do the tax payers that provide the money for the teacher's pay deserve to keep an adequate portion of their own earnings for their own use? Most definitely yes.
The one and only reason that the property tax and income tax rates in Worcester County are as low as they are is because of the huge tax base of Ocean City. Not because of the tourism in OC but the huge number of properties in OC that the owners have to pay property taxes on while almost never partaking of any services that those taxes pay for.
Teachers work hard and when compared to some other occupations(tv/movie actors, pro athletes, major company CEOs etc.) make very little money. However when compared to the majority of workers in Maryland they are well paid. The median household income for Maryland is $70k while the median household income for Worcester is $55k. If the starting pay is around $42k that means a man and a women who were teachers (or a man and a man or woman and a woman) who are a household in Worcester would earn $84k to START. This is well above the median household income in the state and over 50% more than the county.
This is why the people are complaining and eventually will start rebelling about pay. Not just for teachers but also for police and firefighters as well. Public employees are now starting at higher salaries with more job security and better benefits then the taxpayers that fund those salaries. Eventually the taxpayers were bound to complain and become increasingly vocal. The politicians have for years listened to the employee unions now they are beginning to listen to the taxpaying public because the taxpaying public has started to vote again.
Private sector wages aren't increasing either. It's just not educators.
There are several people that have not gotten raises in a few years due to the economy. I guess maybe they will have to do what the rest of us do and cut back on anything they can.
4:59,don't you understand there is less tax money because businesses are closing and more people pay less taxes because they work in the service industry around here?
Teachers can give themselves a pay raise by doing away with the union, or at least mandatory union dues (Thanks Gov. O’Malley).
Get their beloved Senator Mathias to sponsor a bill to kill mandatory union dues (good luck with that), then just stop paying! That’ll put $10-15 a pay period back into their pockets!
Worcester County is increasing my property taxes 6% this year. If the money isn't going for the teachers or county workers, where *IS* it going?! Worcester residents are struggling. What are our county commissioners doing to help? What businesses/jobs have they help bring to this area? I voted for my district's commissioner because of his conservative values. I never dreamed he would support a property tax increase. I am disappointed and will remember this when I vote.
School supplies are getting really expensive,and as we all know teachers buy a lot of the necessary school supplies with their own money.They need a raise,unless requisitions get immediate responses.Like that will ever happen.Someone always takes up the slack,and that someone is always the teacher.
worcester county has the lowest piggyback tax rate of just about every county in the state, times are tough to bad, raise the piggyback tax. as for those teachers who don't like not getting a raise, it's a free country you can quit and go teach elsewhere.
suck it up or get off your asses and do something about it other than whine!!
Lmao. That's the least of the troubles for teachers. They need to quit stirring the pot. It stinks as bad as their attitudes. Things are changing. The revolution isn't going to only effect cops, but every government worker who is unworthy.
Top 50% huh? Above the medium. What is grade scoring system again teachers?
A 91%-100%
B 81%-90%
C 70%-80%
D 60%-69%
F 59% or below.
I'm not a teacher these maybe accurate. If not its close.
So let's score the schools that made the list. Teachers please tell me your schools grade according to this report? Is your school excelling with all A' s and B's? No???? Then you don't deserve no raises! I don't get raises more mediocrity! No one does! Why should you?
Teachers need to buy those supplies. After watch and giving other kids my kids supplies by October I refuse to buy more. Six boxes of tissues gone by October? No way. Same with pencils. Crayons, comp books etc. My kid was very upset the teacher gave other kids her things. Its bull shit.
6:16 go back to school in any rating system a score above 50% is above the average. 50% being average. Think of it as the military ASVAB test where a score above 50 puts you in the upper mental group. Good try at trying to make a point though even if it was wrong.
The new commissioners walked into a budgetary mess! The stabilization (rainy day) fund was being raided for years in order to balance the budget. I heard it was going to be totally depleted in another couple years. The spending was still going on and we were literally going broke. The very LAST thing they wanted to do was raise anyones taxes. I applaud them for having the courage to stand up to the BOEd and say no! The budget was balanced without stealing from the stabilization fund and hopefully we can return to some fiscal sanity.
I say cut their pensions. Teachers are the reason new age kids are so screwed up.
With all the problems with kids today and these teachers have time for this. Should be teaching and helping. Shameful.
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