And with the stroke of a pen, essentially, the Charles commissioners approved a $561.3 million budget, the largest ever for the county.
On Tuesday, May 14, the board unanimously adopted a balanced General Fund budget of $561,338,600, an increase of 6.4% over last year.
The approved budget does not increase the current property or income tax rate while expanding investments in education, public safety and recreation priorities, a release from Charles County government said.
“The fiscal 2025 budget underscores our dedication to meeting the diverse needs of our community, emphasizing crucial areas such as education, public safety and infrastructure, and increasing funding for youth programs,” Commissioner President Reuben B. Collins II (D) said. “This allocation reflects our unwavering support for our public schools, the Sheriff’s Office, and the essential services provided by county government, and highlights our commitment to addressing the needs of young people in our community.”
The budget included a $12.64 million increase for Charles public school system, which exceeds maintenance of effort (the minimum increase required by the state) by nearly $11.7 million and doubles last year’s total funding increase in part to pay for costs associated with the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, the state’s education plan.
However, despite the increase in funding, the school system’s budget request was not fully met this year from the county, resulting in a $17 million shortfall that required intensive budget cuts to create a functioning budget.
The school system reduced its budget from $523.3 million down to $506 million.
Salary increases for school employees and the opening of the Waldorf Early Learning Center for pre-K students were funded under the new budget, which is mandated under the first two pillars of the state’s Blueprint.
The total allocations for education, which also include funding for the Charles County Public Library and College of Southern Maryland, is $248.77 million, or 44.3%, of the county’s general fund budget.
The Charles sheriff’s office, with a total allocation of $130.6 million, or 23.3% of the general fund budget, saw a $9.28 million increase in funding this year.
Funding was provided for 10 new sworn officers, the continuance of the body-worn camera program to include four new record technicians, two other positions and salary increases for staff.
The budget includes a $10.36 million increase for county government operations. The total allocation is $100.07 million, or 17.8%, of the budget.
New spending is proposed for emergency services with the addition of 10 emergency medical technicians, additional staff for recreation and community services, a new position to support commercial development in the county’s Western Technology Corridor and administrative tools and support for technology, security, equity and accountability.
Debt service totals $32.6 million for fiscal year 2025 and the remaining items are $27.4 million for a combined 10.7% of the budget.
The state’s attorney’s office, health department, circuit court, election board and other local government agencies have a total allocation of $21.85 million, or 3.9%.
The fiscal year 2025-2029 capital improvement program budget is $1.07 billion. It provides for county infrastructure, including schools, county buildings, roads, parks, water and sewer facilities and stormwater management.
The real property tax rate is maintained at $1.141 for county government and $0.064 for fire and rescue, per $100 of assessed value. The income tax rate of 3.03% remains unchanged.
At the end of the May 14 budget work session, each commissioner congratulated Jacob Dyer, the acting fiscal director, and his team on a budget well done in a hard year.
“We know next year is going to be tough,” Commissioner Amanda Stewart (D) said. “But looking at this year, some of our surrounding counties are going to be looking at us to figure out how did Charles County do it.”
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