Politics & Government

City Council Approves FY2013 Budget

The mayor and city council approved the Gaithersburg budget for FY2013 at Monday night's council meeting.

Gaithersburg Mayor Sidney Katz and the city council unanimously approved the budget for FY2013 at Monday night's council meeting, keeping taxes at the same rate for a second consecutive year.

The adopted budget totals $51,504,183, marking a 7.35 percent increase over the .

The fiscal year 2013 budget is the third in a five year plan that allows the city to maintain reserves adequate to support unexpected emergencies.

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Council member Mike Sesma said the budget process hasn't been painless, but it hasn't been nearly as bad as in other municipalities across the U.S.

Sesma's colleague, council member Cathy Drzyzgula, cited the city's steady tax level as evidence. The tax rate of $0.262 per $100 of assessed value is among the lowest of the 20 largest municipalities in the state of Maryland

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"This is the second year we've kept taxes the same," Drzyzgula said. "We don't raise taxes with inflation as other jurisdictions do."

Other council members were pleased at the relatively easiness of the budget process in comparison with other places in the U.S.

Henry Marraffa said it's a tribute to all the hard work by everyone at City Hall.

Jud Ashman said it's due to the planning process undertaken three years ago at the start of the budget's five-year plan.

"We're sticking to the plan," Ashman said. "We've been really faithful to the system we set forth a few years ago."

The full budget can be viewed on the City of Gaithersburg website.


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