Montgomery County Council President Natali Fani-González said this week she’s considering lots of options to raise revenue, including raising specialized taxes, to help fund the county budget — a slight move of the needle from her previous statements.

In December, Fani-González told the Banner she was doing “everything in my power not to have a tax increase. That means that we’re gonna have to have cuts.”

But when asked about County Executive Marc Elrich’s proposal to raise certain taxes, Fani-González told reporters during a media briefing Tuesday that “every idea out there needs to be explored.”

“The need is so huge. We don’t have the money. We just don’t,” she said.

When presenting his proposed capital budget in January, Elrich said he believes the county needs to adopt specialized property tax increases that would be earmarked for school construction. He’s continued to advocate for the creation of special taxing districts, similar to those in Northern Virginia, that allow jurisdictions to tax commercial development to fund transportation infrastructure. However, this would require a change in state law to enable the special districts.

Elrich has said over the past several years that he wants to emulate this taxing mechanism in order to invest in transportation infrastructure without relying on the county’s operating budget base.

“We’re going to start talking again ... about restructuring our tax system,” Elrich said.

A spokesperson for Elrich told the Banner Wednesday that Fani-González’s statement was encouraging to the county executive and staff.

The County Council last voted to raise property taxes in 2024, a compromise that still required the county to make cuts to Elrich’s operating budget proposal. Last year, the council rejected Elrich’s proposed income tax increase.

Elrich and council clash over spending affordability guidelines

While Fani-González may be warming to the idea of a tax increase, the council and Elrich are at odds over the county’s spending affordability guidelines. Since fiscal year 2023, the council has capped the county’s bond capacity at $280 million.

The council formally voted Tuesday to maintain that limit, to the dismay of Elrich, who had touted the need to increase the county’s annual limit for general obligation bonds in order to fund infrastructure projects. Elrich’s proposed capital budget was created with the intention that this limit would be raised.

“The school system is finally being honest about its needs, and this is the best way to support the improvements the community has been waiting for,” he said in his weekly address, in which he said he was “disappointed” with the council.

Council members voiced concerns that this is not the time to increase county debt, which is why most voted against raising the spending affordability guidelines.

Council member and Government Operations Committee Chair Kate Stewart said that while the council had previously considered raising the county’s borrowing limit, it is no longer fiscally responsible to raise it higher.

“Unfortunately, the current economic and fiscal conditions have worsened since the fall,” she said. “But we know the need is great.”

The council’s decision will require members to consider large cuts to Elrich’s $6.6 billion capital budget, or raise taxes to support it. During public hearings earlier this week, community members voiced their concerns that Elrich’s capital budget still doesn’t fund all needs, particularly for schools and parks, despite it being 9.6% larger than the previous one passed in 2024.

Jawando introduces bill to ban rent-setting algorithms

At-large council member Will Jawando introduced legislation Tuesday that would prohibit landlords from using algorithms that compare rent prices across other properties to set rates.

“This has inflated the cost of rental housing in our county and across the state and the country,” Jawando said. “We need to act on this now.”

The bill would prohibit the use of algorithmic devices to establish rents or rental terms and prohibit price coordination on rents or rental terms in the county. It would also authorize enforcement.

Jawando said that algorithmic rent-fixing happens when a company provides a service that automatically, through an algorithmic calculation, generates a price for rental housing. The most popular company doing this is called Real Page. The price is based on various factors, including public and nonpublic information, entered by multiple apartment owners and buildings.

“It means higher rents, it means lack of competition, and it leads to higher costs for our residents,” Jawando said.

Jawando said that most renters don’t even know this is occurring.

Similar legislation has been introduced in the General Assembly by Dels. Vaughn Stewart and Julie Palakovich Carr, who represent Montgomery County.

A public hearing on Jawando’s bill is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on March 10.