Matthew Santoni, The Examiner
2008-01-12 08:00:00.0
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Annapolis -

Harford needs special tax districts to help pay for BRAC-related development, County Executive David Craig told state legislators Friday.

With state authorization, the Harford County Council could establish special taxing districts for new developments, where additional fees approved and collected by the developer would pay for roads, schools and such associated with a project, rather than passing that burden on to the county, Craig said.

With at least 19,000 new jobs projected to come to Harford as a result of growth from Base Realignment and Closure at Aberdeen Proving Ground, the county is seeking new ways to pay for the necessary infrastructure.

“Our emphasis is that it makes development pay for everything up front,” Craig said. “Normally, we’d have to collect impact fees and wait for the school enrollment to go up. This would build the school before the overcrowding takes place.”

While nine other counties — including Anne Arundel, Howard and Prince George’s — have similar laws on the books, Harford would intentionally limit its version by allowing the special taxing districts only within the “development envelope” around Route 40 and Bel Air.

Adequate Public Facilities Ordinances have kept any new residential developments from being approved within most of the development envelope until enrollment goes down or new school capacity is added, Craig said.

Delegate B. Dan Riley, D-District 34A, asked the county to prevent development from getting too close to APG because doing so would spur complaints from residents and the government.

“We want more to come to Aberdeen and Edgewood, but when the community moves right up to the fences, they start complaining about the additional traffic and noise form the base,” Riley said. “When you’re setting up these districts, remember that fence line.”

For residential developments, people buying houses would have to be informed of the special tax by the developer, Craig said. Agreeing to the special taxing district could exempt developers from other fees, like the impact fees and transfer taxes that pay for additional infrastructure countywide, he said.

“We put the 100 percent approval requirement and consumer disclosure into the bill, and that goes above and beyond what other jurisdictions have done,” said Sen. Barry Glassman, R-District 35, who worked with Craig and Council President Billy Boniface on the legislation. “We won’t have anybody moving in without knowing they have another bill to pay.”

State Sen. Nancy Jacobs, usually opposed to new taxes, said she favored the special taxing districts.

“The biggest thing about this legislation is that it is not a tax; it’s a self-imposed tax on developers who are building new developments where there are no existing homes,” said Jacobs, R-District 34.

msantoni@baltimoreexaminer.com