A steep cut in Baltimore City?s property tax rate and an array of new sources of revenue are part of a sweeping plan to be issued today by a blue ribbon tax commission.
Impaneled by Mayor Sheila Dixon last April to explore ways to cut the city?s prohibitively high property tax rate ? the highest in the region ? the report provides a comprehensive, long-term plan for cutting property taxes up to 30 percent by increasing taxes and fees.
“What this plan does is address the issue of how to grow the base, which is how we believe we can raise revenues in the long run, by increasing the number of residents,” said the panel?s chairman, former city Councilman Jody Landers.
“The high tax rate keeps an artificial lid on the city?s growth, and we need to change that,” Landers said.
Among proposed sources of new revenue are a regional sales tax, a commuter tax, increasing the city?s local share of state income taxes to the maximum rate, and doubling the current 4 percent cap on property tax increases when property values rise.
“The plan is comprehensive with the long-term of goal of making the city?s property tax rate no more than 50 percent higher than surrounding jurisdictions,” Landers said. “That?s what we need to do to grow.”
Currently, Baltimore?s property tax rate is $2.288 per $100 of assessed value ? 108 percent more than Baltimore County?s rate and significantly higher than all other local jurisdictions. The city has cut the property tax rate by 2 cents for the past four years, with another decrease of 2 cents planned for 2008.
The report, though, departs from the incremental approach, recommending a vast array of new revenue sources that if implemented could allow the city to slash the property tax rate by nearly 65 cents per $100 of assessed value.
The cuts could save the owner of a $100,000 home $260 to $700 annually.
Dixon spokesman Sterling Clifford said the mayor was withholding judgment of the specific proposals until the plan had beenreviewed by residents.
“This will affect every single person in the city. The mayor is committed to making owning property in Baltimore more affordable, but there is no magic bullet; there are trade-offs no matter what strategy we choose.”
The public can comment on the plan at a hearing scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m. Jan. 16 at the Poly-Western complex.
