Baltimore County Council votes to repeal pension bump that became campaign liability

The Baltimore County Council voted unanimously to reverse the pension bump they gave themselves — and make sure they’re never again in a position to give themselves a retirement raise.

The council passed a bill to repeal a measure that retiring Councilman Wade Kach, a Republican, introduced in November 2024 that would have tied pension raises for current council members to future salary increases. They also passed an amendment that Councilman Pat Young introduced to have a county salary commission make future pension decisions instead of the council members themselves.

“With their hands caught in the cookie jar, the County Council did the only thing it could — it took them out and gave back their massive pension increases,” said Nick Stewart, an attorney who is running for county executive and has been hammering the council over what he’s called a pension grab.

Kach’s initial pension bill passed 16 months ago but became a bigger issue after voters approved a charter amendment to pay council members a full-time salary. In January, a county salary board recommended doubling the annual salaries when the council became full-time, from $69,000 to a recommended $140,000.

That would put Baltimore County in line with full-time councils in the state’s two largest counties, Montgomery and Prince George’s. The council has not approved that recommendation yet, and several members have said they think it’s high. But even something lower would give them a decent pension boost.

Kach, who represents northern Baltimore County, said he never expected the salary board to recommend such a high salary.

The councilman, 78, collects pensions from his time as a delegate in the Maryland General Assembly and as a teacher. Under the legislation he introduced in November, Kach would see his annual pension double — allowing him to collect $84,000 after he leaves office in November.

Republican Todd Crandell and Democrat Julian Jones, who are also leaving the council, would have seen their pensions double to $84,000 as well. Republican David Marks, who is running again, would have gotten the biggest bump, to $98,000. Izzy Patoka’s pension would have jumped to $60,000; the Pikesville Democrat is also not returning to the council.

Young, a Catonsville Democrat who is not returning to the council, is more than a decade away from pension eligibility and has only served one term, making his pension benefit not as lucrative as his colleagues’.

Council Chair Mike Ertel, who has served one term, was the only council member to vote against the pension bump in November 2024, saying the increase never sat right with him. Crandell was absent that day. Ertel represents Towson and is running for reelection.

Young, Jones and Patoka are all seeking the Democratic nomination for county executive; Stewart, their primary opponent, has used the pension issue to set himself apart as the only non-elected official in the race. He’s called the pension legislation “a moral outrage.”

Stewart had planned a rally in Towson on Monday night to oppose the pension legislation along with more than a dozen local office candidates and three former council members. The group canceled the rally because of the incoming stormy weather.

Stewart’s campaign has produced a series of videos on social media asserting that Patoka orchestrated the pension sweetener and the expansion in tandem to take advantage of a rare window when members could enrich their compensation.

“Part time to full time, expanding the council, the pension recalculation — these weren’t separate,“ Stewart said. “If there’s one thing that people pay the most to in life, it is their compensation packages.”

Patoka has maintained he never did that, and bristled at the “many, many people with their own narratives they’re trying to create.”

Patoka said that at the time he voted for Wade’s bill, he was focused on expanding the council to bring more diversity and not on the pension bump. He said he trusted Kach when the Republican said the Baltimore County Council would be following the pension precedent that the Maryland General Assembly follows.

That’s partially right. Every four years, the General Assembly Compensation Commission decides on new salaries and benefits. From 2002 to 2014, legislators got no raises; in 2018, they received a raise — from $45,207 in 2015 to $50,330 for delegates and senators, and from $58,718 to $65,371 for the Senate president and House speaker. They’re not going full-time, though; they meet 90 days a year, so their pension will not double. And the county lawmakers max out on their benefit after 16 years; state lawmakers must wait 22 years and three months.

Depending on how long the council members live, the Kach pension bill could have paid out millions of dollars to at least five of the councilmen.

Young said his amendment ensures the council will never again be in this position — something Crandell cheered.

“It’s never sat well with me that I vote on my own salary,” Crandell said. “We shouldn’t be voting on our own compensation.”

Crandell said the pension issue, which stretches back to November 2024, perpetuates the idea that politicians are “self-dealing” and harms public trust.

Young’s amendment also means the council will conform with the state code, which says that any compensation change for a county legislative body “shall be enacted by ordinance before the election for the members of the next succeeding county legislative body and take effect only for the members of the next succeeding county legislative body.”

All three Republicans voted for Young’s amendment, as did Democrat Julian Jones. Patoka and Ertel, both Democrats, voted no on Young’s amendment.

Stewart said he’s grateful that a number of candidates and members of the public raised the issue.

“But,” he added, “it’ll take more than this to restore trust and turn a page on our county’s reputation for self-dealing.”