Baltimore County officials offer glimpse into ‘very uncertain’ 2026 budget situation

Carson Swick

The Baltimore Sun

February 6, 2025

At a public meeting Thursday night, Baltimore County officials gave the public a first look into their budget situation for the upcoming 2026 fiscal year — which begins on July 1.

The town hall meeting on the Community College of Baltimore County’s Catonsville campus was the first of seven such events to be held in each county district in the coming weeks as County Executive Kathy Klausmeier’s administration works to share its vision for spending taxpayer money next year.

Klausmeier briefly described the recent “historic investments” made in District 1 of the county. Included among these investments were the $200 million replacement of Lansdowne High School, $25 million for a new Catonsville fire station, as well as seven-figure contributions to the area’s Recreation and Parks and Arts and Cultural development.

The executive then turned it over to Baltimore County Budget and Finance Director Kevin Reed, who painted the county’s upcoming budget picture in greater detail.

According to Reed, the county has a $4.6 billion operating budget and a longer-running $3.137 billion capital budget. The operating budget covers most traditional public services — schools and libraries, transportation, pensions, public safety and more — while nearly half of the capital budget is taken up by sewer and water expenses.

‘We’re in a very uncertain environment’

Reed explained the amount that the county’s budget can increase is directly tied to its economic growth, which was measured at 4.36%, or $118 million, in fiscal year 2025. Because of this limitation and the extensive funds sought by various county agencies, he said budget requests currently exceed the allowable growth of the county’s budget by $62 million.

“What I want everyone to take away from tonight is uncertainty,” Reed said. “We’re in a very uncertain environment in how we’re going to be building out this budget.”

Though he did not mention President Donald Trump or Maryland Gov. Wes Moore by name, Reed expressed concerns about the impact of potential funding cuts on the federal and state levels. He said such cuts — especially to the area’s prevalent federal workforce — could increase the financial burden on the county.

“About 10% of all Maryland wages come from federal employees, and that is something we’re really concerned about, how that translates into real dollars and our economic activity,” Reed said. “We also have [an] uncertain state budget picture … and we do know there will be some costs transferred onto local governments.”

Weekly budget town hall meetings will continue through February and March. Klausmeier must submit her proposed budget to the Baltimore County Council by April 10, after which the council will review and adopt the budget by late May.

The county budget is legally required to be balanced and to include a 10% rainy day fund, according to Reed.

Public input

During a public comment period at Thursday’s town hall, residents and representatives from local organizations weighed in on various issues they believe deserve more county funding.

Steve Redmer, president of the Baltimore County Professional Firefighters’ Association, said the county’s fire budget has not kept up with inflation. According to Redmer, “general inflation” increased 45% from 2009 to 2023, but the fire budget only increased 35% during that time despite an additional workload.

“Overall, the Baltimore County Fire Department lacks sufficient fiscal, physical and human resources to accomplish its core mission,” Redmer said.

Susana Barrios, president of the Latino Racial Justice Circle said she wanted to ensure county taxpayer funds are not used to aid the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

“Using county dollars to enforce federal policies erodes trust in public safety officers, hurts our local economy and creates panic across our diverse immigrant communities,” Barrios said.

Caitlin Kirby, executive director of Catonsville Emergency Assistance, called on the county to do more to address food insecurity issues. Kirby said charitable donations to this end have recently waned.