Comment Period Open Now for January 25 Virtual Town Hall
Harford County Executive Barry Glassman will host a virtual town hall meeting for citizens to provide input on the next county budget at 6 p.m. on Thursday, January 25 at Harford Community College’s Darlington Hall. In addition to live testimony, multimedia options are available now and will remain open during the meeting to encourage public involvement in planning the fiscal year 2019 budget. The virtual town hall meeting will include live and virtual input and will stream live on the county website.
Beginning immediately, citizens can provide comments on the budget via social media, email, or U.S. Mail. The county executive will review all incoming messages. During the live event, representative comments will be read aloud, along with messages relayed from callers to activated phone lines. This input will be alternated with public comments from attendees.
Comments may be provided through any of the following:
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: Harford County’s Virtual Town Hall
Twitter: @iGovHarford
U.S. Mail: Harford County Executive Barry Glassman, 220 S. Main St., Bel Air, Md., 21014
Phone: 443-412-2700 (dedicated phone line activated only during the live event)
At 6 p.m. on January 25, citizens may also watch the live event from the county Web page www.harfordcountymd.gov/VirtualTownHall. The Web page will also scroll some incoming social media, email, and phone messages.
“Harford County’s virtual town hall meetings received an award from the National Association of Counties as an efficient and convenient way for citizens to share their county budget priorities and hear what others have to say,” County Executive Barry Glassman said. “Everyone is welcome to attend the live event, but participation is also just a call or a click away. We’re making it easier for citizens with busy lives to take part in their local government.”
The virtual town hall meeting will begin with a brief review of the budget process.
By law, the county executive proposes a budget each April to fund county operations and capital programs for the upcoming fiscal year that begins on July 1st. The county executive’s recommended budget, which is based on revenue projections, is then subject to final approval by the Harford County Council.
Once the county executive sets operating funding levels, the council may not add funding to any area of the budget except for the public school system. If the council adds funding for the schools, it can only add up to the amount requested by the school board, and only by taking those funds from another area of the county budget or by raising revenue.
The primary source of county revenue is local property and income taxes paid by county citizens.
In addition to the school system, several other outside agencies depend, in full or in part, on county funding for their operating and capital budgets. These agencies include the sheriff’s office, community college, public library and health department. It is important to note that once county funding for outside agencies is approved by the County Council, budgeting decisions within each agency are determined by that agency’s leadership, based on revenue from all sources.
For more information about the county budget, please visit:
http://www.harfordcountymd.gov/1531/Budget-and-Management-Research.
