When learning the good news that Worcester County will be seeing millions in new tax revenue, things got heated between elected officials, as voices were raised on the topic of budgets and transparency.
Revenue estimates for Worcester County’s fiscal 2026 budget year include an estimated $6 million in income tax increase, and an $18 million increase in property tax revenue, according to Budget Officer Kim Reynolds. She came before the Worcester County Board of Commissioners at its Tuesday meeting to share the news.
Reynolds said county departments will be asked to keep operating budgets at or below a 4 percent increase. From there, Commissioner Chip Bertino (District 5, Ocean Pines) wanted to know if the county’s Board of Education got that message.
Bertino explained that, last year, the Board of Education went into teacher salary negotiations with the teacher’s union “without understanding of what the commissioners were expecting, and it resulted in a lot of confusion on both sides,” he said.
He asked that this time around, the commissioners talk to each together, so they know what’s being said about the education budget. He stopped short of making a motion.
“I know that last year the superintendent and the president of the Board (of Education) were having conversations with a number of commissioners, myself included, about what they were looking to do” with possible teacher raises, “let’s avoid what we had last year with so many different conversations going on, and a divide-and-conquer attitude by some that really created all sorts of problems.”
This is why Worcester County needs affordable Government Housing and Apartments.
Federal government will give Worcester tons of money to build Section 8 housing near the ⛱ Beach.
It might be a good idea too to build memorial statues of Harriet Turman and George Floyd on the Board Walk as well
The answer is vote these liberals out, foot our foot down, and quit building section 8 housing in wicomico and worcester counties