Down-Ballot Dealer—PG County Bonds

This election season, voters must choose not only whether to replace their leaders, but also to approve or reject local governments’ plans for meeting citizen needs.  This Down-Ballot Dealer takes a look at what the leaders of Prince George’s County, Maryland are asking from their constituents this Election Day.

The county wants voters to approve borrowing $506,170,000 through five separate bond issues.  That amount is equivalent to 11.67% of the county’s 2020 budget.

Here’s the Deal: While some bond votes (such as Questions B & C) should be a clear and easy “yes,” voters should demand county leaders to make a case for others (such as Question D) and to specify what they intend for the bonds to fund.  

Unfortunately, voters have few information sources to help guide them  While the county’s Democratic Party has endorsed all the bonds (unsurprisingly, since Democratic officials put them on the ballot), the local Republican Party hasn’t taken a position that This Provinciapolitan has been able to find.  Neither has the county’s Chamber of Commerce, which one might think has an interest in maintaining a balance between a supportable tax burden and the benefits that a homegrown, educated workforce can provide.  There doesn’t seem to be an organized campaign to support the bond package--or one opposing them.  Even the judicial retention election candidates have an organized effort behind them, but no one, not even the officials who approved these bond questions, is making a case directly to the public for the bonds or discussing what they will fund. The bonds are all for various kinds of construction, so the county’s Capital Improvement Program should be enlightening for voters.  But the list of projects and the pricetags are far bigger than the bond packages, so one is left wondering which are prioritized.

That said, Questions B & C will fund library and fire station projects primarily.  These needs are long-standing and the packages are not large, so voters should not hesitate to approve them.  Question E is larger but focused on the community college system, an important resource for the county’s future as it seeks to attract employers.

Question A asks for bonds to fund transportation projects, including necessary things like bridge maintenance.  But in light of the problems facing the Purple Line’s construction, and Governor Hogan’s attempt to redirect tax dollars towards adding Lexus Lanes to the Beltway, voters deserve more specifics than they have been given on what this $178.15 million (the ballot’s largest item) will pay for.

Question D asks for $133 million for the “construction and renovation of county buildings.”  The CIP includes a number of projects this could cover: the homeless shelter planned in Capitol Heights; the rehabilitation of different administrative buildings; and a driver training facility and gun range. At $64 million, the last seems like a luxurious investment and one that seems out of place in the “Central Services” budget.  The bond package doesn’t provide enough money to fully fund all of these, so it’s important for voters to hear what the vision is for these bonds.  There’s probably a case to make for Question D--but since no one seems to be doing so, one couldn’t blame voters if the package fails.

Prince George’s County has a lot of unmet needs that require public investment.  It also has a long history of mismanagement and corruption.  County leaders therefore should be willing to make the case for larger items in a bond election, and explain what residents will be paying for.