Prince George’s County faces a $125.7 million budget deficit heading into the start of the fiscal 2013 budget cycle, county officials estimate.
| Examiner Coverage |
|
|
Revenue is expected to decline 2.7 percent from fiscal 2012, from $2.65 billion to $2.58 billion, according to estimates by the county’s Spending Affordability Committee. Combined with rising expenses, County Executive Rushern Baker faces a bigger budget deficit this year than the $77 million deficit he inherited from former County Executive Jack Johnson in 2011.
The poor revenue forecast is due primarily to the county’s struggling real estate market, which continues to take hits in the new year. Roughly a third of Prince George’s property values fell by an average 24.8 percent on Jan. 1, the highest drop of any county in Maryland. Overall, the value of Prince George’s County properties is projected to drop by $6.8 billion in fiscal 2013.
The decline marked the third consecutive year of negative property value assessments for the county.
