budgets and budgeting

On Tuesday, Howard County Executive Ken Ulman released his capital budget for fiscal year 2015, a $259.9 million spending program that prioritizes funding for schools, parks, water quality improvements and expansion of a new intercounty broadband network.

It's seven days and counting until the 2014 session of the Maryland General Assembly ends at midnight Monday, and the fates of a number of Harford County centered bills remain to be decided in those waning days.

As the General Assembly enters its final week, some tough issues are pending — including figuring out how to comply with

Maryland's personal income growth was among the smallest nationwide last year as federal budget cuts rippled through the wider region, affecting Virginia and the District of Columbia as well, the U.S. Department of Commerce estimated.

Convinced they can provide better bus service than the contractor they paid millions to each year, officials in Howard County plan to replace the middle-man, setting into motion a restructuring of a service that hundreds of central Marylanders rely on each day.

Heroin overdoses will only get worse unless Maryland adequately funds treatment programs

The House of Delegates gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a $38.7 billion budget that trims the governor's plan but still provides raises to state workers and levies no new taxes.

On the day that Carroll County Commissioners received their first briefing on next year's budget, Carroll County Education Association (CCEA) officials made sure that education funding was at the forefront of commissioners' minds.

County and municipal officials in Harford County say their snow removal budgets have been catapulted farther into the red after handling multiple snow and ice events throughout the winter of 2013-2014, including the latest storms the past two weeks.

Last week, Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker III introduced his capital and operating budgets for fiscal year 2015, which total $3.41 billion and include increased funds for education while reducing operational costs in other departments.

About $1.1 million in state funding for Carroll County Public Schools this year and at least $1 million in each of the next two years is currently the subject of debate for Carroll legislators in Annapolis.

We can still produce the best products, but we lack the leadership and focus to compete on the world stage.

It's one of the most important wedding decisions ¿ where to, you know, have the wedding. Apart from finding a spot that fits your unique tastes and themes, there's the matter of timing. Some wedding consultants suggest booking one year or more in advance. Yeah, these places fill up fast.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake will unveil a nearly $2.5 billion budget Wednesday that would not cut Baltimore services for the first time since before the recession and would give city employees a cost-of-living raise.

Harford County has begun collecting its version of the controversial statewide storm water fee, known as the "rain tax," but it remains unclear what will happen with the collected revenue.

Bel Air town officials expect the second Saturday in April to be an extremely busy 24-hour period in town, with four events scheduled for that day.

Havre de Grace Mayor Wayne Dougherty warned of "the most challenging budget of my administration" for fiscal year 2015 and said he expects to raise water and sewer rates by 20 percent, as suggested by a city commission.

The Rawlings-Blake administration's efforts to slash Baltimore's long-term deficit has run into a bump — more than $100 million in new police, education and other expenses now expected over the next decade.

After more than a dozen years fighting side by side in Afghanistan and Iraq, the Army and the National Guard now are battling each other over budget cuts.

As the 2014 campaign for governor heats up, candidates of both parties are lavishing promises of bold new programs or deep tax cuts – in many cases giving vague and sometimes implausible explanations of how they will pay for them.

The schedule and budget for the James Webb Space Telescope have grown over the years, but NASA's Bill Ochs is minding the project so further delays and cost overruns don't happen.

The plan to build a combination middle and high school in Havre de Grace cleared a major hurdle recently when the state agency that oversees local school construction projects gave Harford County school officials authority to initiate planning for the new school.

South Carolina lawmakers weren't thrilled that two public universities assigned books with gay and lesbian themes as reading.

Bel Air town officials are eager the see the last of this winter's snow melt away and the cold weather warm up, as the first of the community's early spring activities are quickly approaching.

The Senate gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a $38.9 billion state budget that includes no new taxes while giving state workers a 2 percent cost-of-living raise. It is slightly leaner than the governor proposed.

Maryland's perennial budget woes signal time for a change.

At his second budget hearing for fiscal year 2015 Monday night, County Executive Ken Ulman heard additional funding requests for projects ranging from a parking expansion for Howard Community College, new biking infrastructure throughout the county and childcare payment assistance for families in need.

Key senators have put language in the state budget bill that would stall Maryland's efforts to limit one of the Chesapeake Bay's main pollutants, phosphorus.

Annapolis Mayor Mike Pantelides proposes his budget for the city.

Maryland's slipping state tax revenues are an unwelcome development but hardly a crisis.

Maryland's model land preservation program is losing ground, literally, in Annapolis

Maryland faces a revenue shortfall of $238 million over the next 15 months, state officials warned Thursday.

The Baltimore County Planning Board on Thursday gave its stamp of approval to the school board's $56 million capital budget request for fiscal year 2015, though it attached a caveat to a controversial school construction plan included in the budget.

Each year Anne Arundel County high school seniors leave graduation stages with diplomas in hand and considerable money making potential to local economies in tow.

Perryville's mayor and two town commissioners failed to act Tuesday on a proposal to hire a commercial service to drive away Canada geese from two town parks, after the mayor objected to moving so quickly.

The board was unanimous in its approval of the fiscal year 2015 and fiscal year 2016 capital budgets, which total $12.81 million and $9.66 million. The fiscal year 2015 and fiscal year 2016 operating budgets, which total $63,014,000 and $65,226,000, were approved by a 6-3 vote, with board members Alex Hekimian, Gregg Schwind and Russ Swatek voting against.

President Barack Obama unveiled a $3.9 trillion federal budget on Tuesday that calls for spending billions more on infrastructure, raising taxes on the wealthy and closing an income inequality gap the president has made a top target of his second term.

Maryland's foster care system should not appropriate Social Security survivor benefits of children in its care.

Proposal to expand Earned Income Tax Credit deserves Republican support (and probably won't get it)

Maryland Democrats dodge accountability for the health care rollout, state budget decisions.

Wintry precipitation starting around 10 p.m. Sunday is expected to bring up to a tenth of an inch of ice and as much as 8 inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.

The Columbia Association Board of Directors approved the capital and operating budgets for fiscal years 2015 and 2016 Thursday evening.

From a presentation by Frito-Lay to approving the much-discussed Transit Oriented Development code to giving the OK for the police to sell one of its old cars, there was more than just pay raises and potholes addressed at Monday night's Aberdeen City Council meeting.

Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp and Comptroller Peter Franchot warned senators Wednesday that Gov. Martin O'Malley's proposal to divert $100 million a year from the state pension fund to next year's budget threatens the long-term health of the retirement system.

Carroll County Board of Education members unanimously approved Superintendent Steve Guthrie's $331.9 million fiscal year 2015 budget proposal Wednesday, calling it a "very modest" and "conservative" budget.

The U.S. military is due for an overhaul that leaves it more sustainable and better equipped to meet contemporary threats

Harford County and its municipalities had either broken the bank or were close to breaking on their snow removal budgets even before a winter storm dumped 1 to 2 feet of snow around the county in mid-February.