Md. Gubernatorial Candidates To Face Tough Economy
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Maryland's new governor may face some tough economic times with a budget deficit and now news of a possible property tax hike.
Political reporter Pat Warren has a response from both the Republican and Democratic campaigns.
It appears that Maryland's troubled economy won't be getting better any time soon.
Submit your questions for the candidates here for a gubernational debate on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. on WJZ.
At the peak of the 2014 campaign for governor comes news that the state not only has a budget deficit but Comptroller Peter Franchot says it cannot afford to pay its debt without deep cuts in an already strained budget or a state property tax hike.
"Maryland families are so badly hit by this recession that to ask them to pay this debt service---it's just reaching into their pocket at exactly the wrong time. That leaves the general fund, but that's a bad option too because we just wrote the revenues down by $405 million last week, so the new governor's going to have a very difficult job," Franchot said.
Republican Larry Hogan says the news bears out his warnings about spending in Annapolis.
"I hate to see us in this kind of situation. It's terrible for the state. We've got to come up with real solutions but it didn't come as a shock to me, either. I mean, they seem totally unaware of the fact that this was going to happen," Hogan said.
In the Democratic primary campaign, Lt. Anthony Brown promised to look at tax reform, as well as maintaining funding levels.
"We're going to make sure we give relief to working families, that we're incentivising employers to invest in job-creating activities in Maryland and that we're protecting our investments in education, public safety, the environment and health care," Brown said.
Brown was unavailable for comment on the latest budget news but his campaign manager states, "We will do what all Maryland families do when faced with hardship: we will tighten our belts and make do with less."
Hogan says if voters are satisfied with the way things are going, they should vote for Brown.
"If they think we've got to stop the taxes and all the spending, if they want to turn the economy around, it doesn't matter whether they're Democrats or Republicans or where they live, they need to vote to bring about that change," Hogan said.
November 4 is election day.
The comptroller says the state must come up with an additional $2.3 billion over the next five years. Adjusting the budget is the job of the Board of Public Works, which is made up of the governor, the comptroller and the treasurer.
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