FY 23 Approved Budget Book

II. Methodology and Background A. Methodology, Background and Data Studied

Since its inception in 1992, the Committee has been reporting under the County's Executive Order creating the Committee. We were very fortunate that the composition of the Committee consisted of five returning members and one new member, who worked well together to meet this task with a broad base of relevant experience. In addition, the County Treasury and Budget staffs, are familiar with the Committee’s process and are able to provide relevant guidance. Therefore, we were able to focus all our efforts on our primary charges. Over the years of operation, the Committee has formulated a methodology for adopting a guideline of the percentage increase in spending affordability for the County. The Committee again decided to follow the traditional "budget based" estimate of spending affordability. That is, estimating a level of revenue that will become available, through the collection of taxes and fees, assuming no increase in applicable rates not already enacted or announced. This approach contrasts methodologies adopted by certain other jurisdictions which are typically defined as estimating spending levels tied to citizens' ability to pay for additional services.

We also utilized information from the following sources: ·

Income tax collections for Harford County, through February, 2022, provided by the Harford County Treasurer. · Property tax collections, and estimates, for Harford County, through FY 2022 and 2023, provided by the Harford County Treasurer. · Additional input from the County Treasurer as to the impact of the Maryland General Assembly recent actions and any

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