Department of Finance & Budget: Tax Differential Rate for the Town of North Beach Update
Calvert County Board of County Commissioners · 5013-7 ·
Old Business
What the bill says
On the agenda for Board of County Commissioners — 2026-04-14 — 2026-04-14. Agenda section: OLD BUSINESS
Background
State law allows municipalities to request a reduction in the county property tax paid by their residents, based on the premise that town residents also pay municipal property taxes to fund services the county does not provide within town limits.
Historically, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meets with the mayors of the county’s two incorporated towns – Chesapeake and North Beach – to discuss the tax rate differential.
Discussion
The county’s Real Property Tax rate for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 is $0.967 per $100 of assessed value, with no increase proposed for FY 2027. The tax differential rate is an adjustment to the county rate for town residents. The adjustment is intended to reflect the cost savings to the county from services provided by the towns rather than by the county.
Following additional discussion and consideration of municipal input during the FY 2027 budget process, staff would like to recommend a tax differential rate consistent with prior year models of a mirrored rate for both towns, resulting in a rate of $0.362 per $100 of assessed value for the Town of North Beach.
Moving forward in FY 2028, staff will partner with both municipalities to evaluate and refine the methodology for calculating tax differentials.
Extracted from the source document (public record).
Documents
- Memo from Malena Brookshire, Chief Financial Officer — 2026-04-07
What analysts say
No independent (CBO/CRS-style) analysis exists for county measures. The nearest analog is the sponsoring department's own assessment, from its staff memo — self-reported, not independent:
Fiscal Impact (staff-reported)
This is an annual reduction to the county revenues by lowering the tax rate for the town residents. The rationale for this lower tax rate is the savings that the county receives as a result of the town-provided services. The tax differential rate is expected to have an impact of approximately $88,000.
Conclusion/Recommendation (staff-reported)
Staff requests that the Board approve an adjusted tax differential rate of $0.362 per $100 for the Town of North Beach in the FY 2027 budget, reflecting considerations specific to this budget cycle. Staff will return to the Board with a refined approach to tax differential calculations for future fiscal years.
Reported by the sponsoring department — Department of Finance & Budget · Malena Brookshire, Chief Financial Officer · 2026-04-07 in its own memo, not an independent estimate. Source memo.
What politicians say
No linked claims or utterances yet — no one on record has cited this measure to justify a public argument.