Harford County lawmakers met strong resistance to a bill giving special priority to transportation and school projects resulting from military growth, as other jurisdictions feared it would rearrange funding at their expense.
Del. Barry Glassman, R-District 34, went before theHouse of Delegates? Appropriations Committee to solicit support for a bill that would label projects in Harford and Anne Arundel counties affected by the Base Realignment and Closure process in hopes of getting more consideration from state agencies when they are allocating funds.
Glassman said the bill would only identify the projects and not mandate that they get extra funding, but several delegates and analysts said the law was written to put BRAC-related projects ahead of others.
“I?d hate to see us in a situation where we automatically prioritize BRAC communities at the expense of other communities who might have needs at the same time,” said Del. John Bohanan, a St. Mary?s County Democrat. “I worry about the precedent this would set.”
Del. Keith Haynes, D-Harford, said the Baltimore City had greater need for funding than Harford or Anne Arundel even without BRAC considerations.
Glassman emphasized that other communities with greater need would still get their share of funding, and the special designation for BRAC projects might be helpful down the road if future state budgets ever include funding just for those needs.
While the Greater Baltimore Committee supported the bill, a representative of the Department of Transportation specifically told the committee that his department was not yet taking a position.
David Lever, executive director of the Maryland Public School Construction Program, said the bill would interfere with the current system wherein local governments define their priorities, and the state allocates funds accordingly.
“I can think of many examples where a non-BRAC project might and should take priority over a BRAC project,” Lever said.
Glassman?s bill, filed as House Bill 118, was among several proposals made to try to get BRAC-affected communities special recognition or greater funding from the state.
