Baltimore Mayor Martin O?Malley backed away from statements that the city is growing again.
In a recent meeting, he told The Examiner, “I wish we could make it happen more quickly. I?m sorry we haven?t been able to make it happen more quickly.”
We are too. A growing population means more property tax revenue for cutting Baltimore?s outrageously high rates while funding schools and essential city services.
The mayor should cut property taxes now to give people a reason to move into the city.
One thing that will continue to hold the city back is partially out of the mayor?s control, however: How much property is exempt from taxes.
Of the $10.4 billion worth of property in the city as of July 1, 23 percent is not taxable.
Religious, charitable, fraternal and sororal, and educational groups receive property tax exemptions. So do the blind and disabled veterans and their spouses, and government property is exempt.
We do not begrudge groups their exemptions, especially as nonprofits employ 28 percent of those in the private sector in the city, according to the 2005 Johns Hopkins Nonprofit Employment Bulletin.
Statewide, the nonprofit sector employs about 11 percent of private sector workers. If that translates roughly to about 10 percent of taxable property, it means Baltimore bears a huge disproportionate tax burden compared to the rest of the state to provide services for those who do not pay for them.
With nonprofit jobs in the city and region expanding while for-profit jobs stagnate or shrink, that means more land will move into the untaxable category. Given that nonprofit health care jobs dominate area employment, no signs point to the trend changing. Four of the top 10 largest employers in the region are nonprofit health care providers. Three are in the city.
To offset the cost of services, those nonprofits who can afford to pay should do so voluntarily. It would send a message to the city that they value their services and want to make Baltimore as vibrant as possible.
We congratulate any of those who already do so for their leadership.
To encourage nonprofits to contribute to the city the mayor must assure them that government revenues truly go to services and are not squandered through waste, sloth, abuse and fraud.
