Prince George’s Fights For Aid

Prince George’s County will lose $18 million in state aid, but no one can agree why.

Prince George’s County is poised to lose $18.3 million in state aid next year, but members of the General Assembly don’t agree about why that is or how to fix it.

Some officials argue that it is the result of an anomaly in a state spending formula that redistributes state income tax dollars. But Prince George’s County lawmakers are moving forward with a bill that would fix a discrepancy between state and federal law that they claim is causing problems. On top of that, budget analysts have recommended that the aid program be totally eliminated.

The state’s “disparity grant” program uses state money to help counties with smaller tax bases, so they can provide services that are roughly equivalent to those in richer counties. Some officials see the reduction in aid to Prince George’s County as a naturally-occurring result of the recession. But Prince George’s County officials insist that the problem lies in an outdated formula that does not accurately measure counties’ wealth.

The issue may affect other jurisdictions receiving disparity grants as well. Since it is primarily more affluent people who file their tax returns in line with the extension deadline, Ross said, the wealth formula no longer accurately measure wealth.

“The richest people are not getting their income counted in the wealth formula,” Ross said. “Every year we look at Sept. 1, but in some counties, where there are a lot of wealthy people, for tax purposes they don’t report until Oct. 15, so it’s never counted.”



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