Montgomery County’s budget shortfall may be $250 million greater — nearly twice as large — as initially expected, the lead council member for financial matters told The Examiner on Thursday.
The county may face a budget gap of $400 million to $500 million for the fiscal year that begins in July 2009, Councilwoman Duchy Trachtenberg said, as opposed to the $251 million projected shortfall mentioned in preliminary estimates from County Executive Ike Leggett.
Trachtenberg, who chairs the council’s Management and Fiscal Policy Committee, said she had received a “preview of sorts” on the latest revenue information, which she described as “quite devastating.”
Finance officials said they will release updated data Monday, which will include estimated income tax returns from late filers, who had until Oct. 15 to submit taxes.
“I think we all feel it’s going to get worse but we don’t have a number yet to release,” said Tim Firestine, Montgomery’s chief administrative officer, who communicates regularly with Trachtenberg about financial matters.
According to Firestine, a gap of $500 million seemed high at this point, but hitting $400 million was “within the realm of the possible, sure.” Fairfax County has a projected shortfall of $500 million for the next fiscal year.
Leggett, the county’s top elected official, recommended nearly $50 million in immediate budget cuts last week. Council members are evaluating his suggestions now.
On Thursday, the council’s education committee recommended the school sytem cut $3 million in spending, rather than the $19.3 million sought by Leggett. A different panel of council members, including Trachtenberg, endorsed roughly $3 million in cuts to Montgomery’s Health and Human Services budget.
Trachtenberg and Councilman Roger Berliner balked, however, at chopping $175,000 in supplemental payments for people who work with the developmentally disabled, saying they would find savings elsewhere.
“This is a community where staffers are routinely underpaid and there is a great deal of responsibility handled by caretakers, parents in particular, and to reduce resources further would be problematic,” Trachtenberg said.
She said she hopes to roll out some of her own savings recommendations Monday.
“Obviously when you’re staring at a deficit of $400 [million] or $500 million, it is hard,” Trachtenberg said. “I just think in this kind of environment, you can’t worry about new buildings, bricks and mortar, and bells and whistles — you have to invest in certain areas like families in the community and delivering services to them, especially families in need.”
