Leggett Unveils a $4.8 Billion Montgomery County Budget Proposal

The plan holds the line on property taxes and schools aid and boosts aid for public safety.

A $4.8 billion county operating budget plan unveiled by Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett on Friday holds the line on property taxes and schools spending and adds more than 100 new jobs in public safety and libraries. Leggett (D) presented his budget plan for fiscal 2014, which begins July 1, at a news conference in Rockville. The plan would keep property taxes within the limit allowed by the county charter and below the rate of inflation. Average monthly property taxes would increase by $6.67. Tax-supported government spending would increase by 3.9 percent—less than half the increase in fiscal 2013—to $1.3 billion. Leggett also proposed a slight increase in aid for Montgomery County Public Schools to meet Maryland's maintenance of…

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Fred Foo

10:27 pm on Sunday, March 17, 2013

It's not as simple as you say. It's important to recognize that while good schools attract people, high taxes repel people. And the people who can most easily afford the taxes can also afford to send children to private schools.   more ›

Leggett Asks for Budget Input at 5 Public Forums

Public forums for Montgomery County's FY14 operating budget are scheduled in January and Feburary.

Montgomery County residents can have their say regarding the county's FY14 operating budget priorities at five public forums in January and February. The forums, which are sponsored by County Executive Ike Leggett, begin at 7 p.m. on the following dates: • Jan. 10, Mid-County Community Recreation Center, 2004 Queensguard Rd., Silver Spring; • Jan. 24, BlackRock Center for the Arts, 12901 Town Commons Dr., Germantown; • Jan. 28, Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Service Center, 4805 Edgemoor La., Bethesda; • Jan. 29, Silver Spring Civic Building, One Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring; and • Feb. 4, Eastern Montgomery Regional Services Center, 3300 Briggs Chaney Rd. Silver Spring. Leggett will announce his recommended fiscal year 2014 operating …

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VIDEO: Leggett's Political Future

Despite pressure to reconsider, Montgomery's two-term county exec has not reversed his decision to step down in 2014.

Last year, Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) went on the record saying that he would not seek a third term in office. In this fifth excerpt from a recent interview with Patch editors, Leggett acknowledges that he has been “under a lot of pressure from people asking me to reconsider," but says he hasn't wavered from on his decision not to run, "as of yet." Click here for Part 1 of the interview, in which Leggett discussed the ballot referendum on the Maryland "Dream Act," which would allow in-state tuition for certain illegal immigrants. Click here to watch Part 2, on his support for Maryland's historic same-sex marriage law. In Part 3, Leggett talks about the county's fiscal outlook. Part 4 covers Montgomery's projected …

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Montgomery Builds its Salvadoran State of Mind

A year later, Sister Cities relationship is nourishing an offspring of economic and cultural exchanges.

What started as a partnership that took root between Montgomery County and El Salvador last summer is bearing fruit in the form of continued efforts to foster cultural understanding and spur educational and economic outreach. County Executive Isiah Leggett will give voice to those deepening ties on Sunday at the Salvadoran Festival at the Montgomery County fairgrounds in Gaithersburg, where he’ll address those celebrating El Salvador's independence. The burgeoning relationship traces back to 2009 when Leggett (D) pushed to find Montgomery County its first Sister City. El Salvador accounts for one-third of Montgomery County’s residents who are foreign-born, making the Central American country an obvious choice as Montgomery’s first Sister …

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Parsons on Politics

Lemonade Warriors

With so many issues left unresolved, you'd think Montgomery County could do a better job at picking its battles.

Sometimes you just have to wonder about the politics of this place. Our local economy is sputtering again, the housing market is flirting with a double-dip, our transportation system is getting more congested and crumbling around us, and local and state budgets are showing years of red ink ahead. Yet, amid all of these truly important issues, what has prompted the most vigorous response from Montgomery County officials lately? Prohibiting fire and rescue personnel from "passing the boot" to raise money for muscular dystrophy and cracking down on illicit lemonade stands at the U.S. Open.  Wow, I sure feel a lot better, how about you? I have always wondered about this "passing the boot" issue. As I understand it, such solicitations are not …

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Residents Give Feedback on 2012 Budget in Anticipation of Shortfall

The meeting with County Executive Ike Leggett in downtown Silver Spring was the second of five planned budget forums throughout January.

Montgomery County's public schools and other county services were high on the list of concerns of Silver Spring residents who attended Thursday evening's public forum on the 2012 budget. More than 100 people packed into two rooms at the civic center in Veterans Plaza for Thursday's meeting, the second of five public meetings with County Executive Ike Leggett about the FY2012 budget and the county's expected $300 million shortfall. Before hearing from residents, Joe Beach, the director of the Montgomery County Office of Management and Budget, offered a brief visual presentation that outlined the current budget situation, including an explanation of how the budget process works, a breakdown of the FY11 budget and the shortfall challenges …

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tony hausner

6:16 pm on Friday, January 14, 2011

I also feel leggett gave very good responses to comments. well handled session   more ›