Legislation Blocked That Would Expand County Council's Spending Authority

BEL AIR, MD — Harford Executive Bob Cassilly on Tuesday vetoed Bill 26-014, a proposed charter amendment that stopped the County Council from being able to increase spending.

Cassilly said in a statement that Bill 26-014 would allow the County Council to increase any existing line item in the current expense or capital budget.

The county executive’s veto letter reads, in part:

“As it has for the past 50 years, the Harford County Charter requires the county executive to submit a balanced budget for the coming fiscal year. The County Council’s role in our well-ordered system of government is to act as a check on the county executive’s spending. To achieve that purpose, the council has the authority to intervene to cut budget line items.

… This system has served Harford’s citizens and taxpayers well in effectively limiting the size of government, controlling spending and taxes, and protecting the county’s AAA bond rating, all while delivering high-quality essential services.”

Cassillly wrote that, "By contrast, Bill 26-014 would permit the Council to increase any existing line item in the current expense or capital budget. The bill provides that the Council may not add a new item, but that limitation does not prevent it from materially expanding an existing program, project, agency or appropriation."

Cassilly also said he believes that the bill would lead to high taxes that are not corrected by the bill's balanced budget requirement, and would give organized interests, such as government labor unions, lobbyists and political supporters, a new and direct path to exercise influence to obtain increases in individual budget lines during the Council's budget-review period.

Read Cassilly's letter online.