My Initial Thoughts on the Proposed Operating Budget

This morning, the County Executive transmitted his Recommended FY12 Operating Budget to the County Council. Next year’s operating budget represents both a continuation of the fiscal challenges we have experienced in recent years and a framework for future budgets. I commend the County Executive and his team for their hard work in developing this proposal.

While the County Executive’s Recommended Budget contains cost-cutting measures that will be difficult for residents and employees in the short term, I am pleased that it includes a balanced long-term fiscal plan. I spearheaded this new approach to budgeting last year, and I’m gratified to see a continued long-term perspective in our budget work. I have asked our Office of Legislative Oversight to look at the plan, particularly in terms of its progress toward resolving our structural deficit. I also plan to look closely at the reserve funds proposed by the County Executive. Last year, we set a policy to increase our reserves as we believed this would greatly improve our ability to handle future downturns and would confirm the historical excellence of our financial management.

I encourage residents to engage in the conversation about the hard decisions we will make in the coming months. As I have said many times before, I remain committed to fairness and equity among stakeholders and will work to make sure no one group shoulders a disproportionate burden. Residents should feel free not only to contact the Council as a whole but also to contact me directly at councilmember.floreen@montgomerycountymd.gov.