FY 27 Proposed Operating Budget

April 15, 2026 Hardworking families expect their county government to live within taxpayers’ means. My FY 2027 budget fulfills that promise for the fourth consecutive year and still makes record-level investments in public safety and education, while funding enhancements to our overall quality of life. Getting here was not easy. When I came into office four years ago the county government was spending more than it was taking in, leaving my administration with a $90M structural deficit. Today, that deficit has been eliminated, and we are on a sustainable path where spending aligns with anticipated revenue growth. We did it, in part, by resisting demands to continue spending at the sugar-high levels of the COVID pandemic and federal stimulus years. We did it even after learning – one month into my term – that the volunteer ambulance service was no longer viable, and we had to quickly staff and equip 17 ambulances countywide. Since then, we have reduced response times, and we are saving lives every day. We also held the line on the 25% of the county’s general fund budget that operates under my direct administration, with an increase of only 1% per year (except for public safety). Fiscal discipline, procurement savings, and greater efficiencies - these are the tools of good governance that helped us direct record-level funding to the remaining 75% of the budget that funds our priorities of public safety and education. Public safety If citizens don’t feel safe, nothing else matters. My top priority is public safety through highly trained and equipped ambulance services, robust volunteer fire companies, and highly competitive salaries for sheriff’s deputies. Along with standing up 17 ambulance units with lifesaving equipment for citizens who are sick or injured, we also improved service with lifesaving interventions including the infusion of whole blood and the ability to open a patient’s airway using a procedure called Rapid Sequence Intubation. Our volunteer fire companies that serve us with tireless dedication will receive record-level funding for their critical mission. To strengthen law enforcement, we are investing in sheriff’s deputies ahead of buildings. In each year of my administration, deputies have received substantial raises and next year’s budget provides funding to raise the average deputy salary to $113,700 before overtime, making Harford highly competitive among area jurisdictions.

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