Let's Control Spending in Montgomery County, MD

By Authority Committee to Control MoCo Spending – Victoria Birkett Treasurer

Get in Touch

(202) 579-2243

Let's Control Spending in Montgomery County, MD

By Authority Committee to Control MoCo Spending – Victoria Birkett Treasurer

Get in Touch

The Platform

Stop the Spend

Objective

We want to change the County Charter to ensure that the Montgomery County Executive and County Council cannot increase spending above the prior year's rate of inflation.

About

Control MoCo Spending (CMS) was formed to limit the County spending to the prior year's Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI is a measure of inflation, specifically focusing on the prices that consumers pay for goods and services. It tracks changes in the cost of consumer items, representing everyday purchases like food, housing, and transportation.

Last years rate of inflation was 2.4% however the County Executive is proposing a 6% increase.

Background

This proposed legislation is not intended to cut any specific budget item, it simply spurs conversation on cutting spending instead of always raising taxes. This petition is silent on what and how much will be capped. The decision on what may get capped is solely up to the County Council. If successful, the aggregate of County spending will be limited to the prior year's CPI, unless the County Council votes unanimously to raise it.

Question: Will this spending cap prevent raising taxes in the event of a natural disaster or major catastrophe?
Answer: No. The cap on raising taxes can be overridden with a unanimous vote of all 11 County Council members.

Video

Mark Talks

Montgomery County spending has risen dramatically, while local families and businesses continue to face higher taxes, fees, and everyday costs. The Stop the Spend initiative would limit the annual growth of county spending to the rate of inflation unless the County Council unanimously votes to exceed that limit. This measure does not determine which programs should be funded or reduced. It simply requires the County Council to establish priorities, make responsible budget decisions, and control the overall growth of spending.

WFT Engineering donates to the "Stop the Spend" ballot petition.

Everyone watching this video knows a remote worker, a young family, or a retired teacher who moved to places such as Delaware and North Carolina for one simple reason: Year after year, families and homeowners are asked to pay more in taxes and fees, but too often County government doesn’t first do the hard work of finding savings, reducing waste, and eliminating inefficiencies. That’s why we need the “Stop the Spend” ballot petition. The goal is simple: before County Council increases spending beyond the rate of inflation, they should look first at where spending can be reduced. This petition does not cut any specific program. It does not tell the County Council what to fund or what not to fund. It simply creates a conversation around fiscal discipline, so the answer is not always higher taxes.

Will Jawando vs raising taxes

Are you tired of Jawando's gaslighting and double talk? Help us gather signatures and change the County charter to limit County spending to the prior year's rate of inflation on the ballot in November.

Get Your "Stop the Spend" Yard Sign!!!

The NEW "Stop the Spend" yard signs are in!!

Show your support for controlling County government spending by capping annual growth to the prior year’s inflation rate, making the County more affordable, protecting taxpayers, and promoting fiscal discipline.

Why is Montgomery County paying anonymous vendors?

Our committee obtained the 2024 check register from Montgomery County and we were shocked that it included over 50,000 disbursements totaling over $325,000,000 to anonymous, unknown vendors. That is over $300 for every resident in the County and over $500 for every voter. This number has doubled in the past two years.

Whereas there may be discretion / privacy concerns regarding people on public assistance, the businesses that are providing services to the County should be made public. So should tuition assistance for public employees, local travel for employees, weapons, uniform purchases, space rentals, laboratory services, etc.

We offer that Montgomery County has an obligation to be transparent with the spending of our tax dollars. There should be no checks written to businesses that are listed with a vendor number only and not fully disclosed with a contract number. The voters should be able to verify the County spending against the candidate contributions.

We also offer that prudent County leadership has an obligation to review spending before raising taxes, assessments, and fees.

We urge you to take a few minutes to download the Montgomery County checkbook and spend some time seeing where your tax dollars are going. You will be shocked. Download here: https://we.tl/t-9cOFHOyyjv

Let's Control Spending in Montgomery County, MD

Let's Control Spending in Montgomery County, MD