From the office of Del. Kathy Szeliga:
Fall is here already!
Cheap Trees in Baltimore County
Baltimore County’s Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability is hosting its 8th bi-annual Big Trees Sale to encourage homeowners to plant trees in their yards.
Trees range from $20 to $30 and are mostly 4-5 feet in three gallon pots. Trees must be ordered on line. The pick-up date is Saturday, October 12.
Click Here to Order on-line (Baltimore County residents)
Any questions about the Big Trees sale may be emailed to EPS at bigtrees@baltimorecountymd.gov
Great News on the Rain Tax!
For those of you who missed it, Harford County Executive David Craig is calling for the repeal of the Rain Tax in Harford County! This is great news – not just for Harford County property owners. This is just the first of our victories. The Harford County repeal should pass through the Council in October. Thanks David Craig!
I continue to hear from Baltimore County property owners about their ridiculously high Rain Tax bills.
– The Depot building (huge old aircraft building) at the end of Rt 43 in Middle River has a $70,000 annual bill.
– RG Steel, which occupies part of the once great Bethlehem Steel, has a Rain Tax bill of $774,000 yearly.
– Wirtz and Daughters in White Marsh – a great two generation family owned business – has an $8,500 yearly Rain Tax Bill. They sell landscaping materials like mulch and stone – the very materials used to help keep are area beautiful.
– Camz Dumptrucks in Rosedale has a $13,000 annual bill. He employs about 50 people in good jobs – trucking and mechanics.
How will Baltimore County businesses compete against businesses in neighboring counties that do not charge the Rain Tax? Some will raise their prices – if they can. Others will be forced to cut their payroll, the highest expense for most businesses. After all, business cannot print money; only the federal government can do that.
Be sure to sign the petition on the right side of this newsletter. If you have a Rain Tax bill that you want to appeal, please be sure to do that ASAP. If you have a Rain Tax bill you want to share with me, please do so.
The Rain Tax is soaking Maryland.
Latest News on the New Firearm Law
The firearm bill that passed during the last legislative session is scheduled to take effect on October 1, 2013.
1. The Maryland State Police had a huge backlog of applications for firearms. Firearm applications include personal information including full name, address, birth date and social security number. In an attempt to get the applications processed, the State Police enlisted other state agencies to help process the forms. This has the potential of exposing citizens’ personal information in a non-secure way. The House Republican Caucus is looking into this and asking for answers about how that information was protected. A lawsuit has been filed by the Associated Gun Clubs.
2. The Maryland Attorney General issued an opinion saying if you have not picked up your handgun before October 1, you will have to follow the new that is much more onerous. It was previously believed that as long as someone had purchased a handgun prior to October 1- and were awaiting processing of paperwork, the current law would be applied. Last week was the deadline for first time handgun owners to fall under the current law.
3. There will be a number of legal challenges to the new firearm law. If you want to stay up to date on this issue, I recommend that you sign up for email updates from the Associated Gun Clubs – AGC website
4. There is a rally in support of gun rights scheduled in Annapolis on Monday, September 23 at 11:00 AM. See the AGC website for more information.
Weddings!
It’s with great joy that I share with you the marriage of our two sons this summer!
Eric married Amanda on July 13th at Ravens Stadium! Everyone had a ball – pun intended!
Steve married Christy on September 14th at Maryvale Castle in Baltimore County. It was a fairytale wedding – castle included!
We cannot be more proud of our sons and their beautiful brides and we are blessed beyond measure. Thankfully, all four live right here in the Baltimore area so we get to see them regularly.
I guess the next chapter in life begins… God is Good!
Thanks for your continued support and prayers. I will keep you updated on this important issue as more information is made available.
As always, do not hesitate to call me if I can be of assistance to you and your family.
Kathy
Delegate Kathy Szeliga
Minority Whip
Maryland House of Delegates
David Craig’s repeal of the “rain tax” is an illegal, politically motivated action….what’s new! 🙁
How is calling for a repeal illegal?
Whatever keeps the Gov’s hand out of my pocket is fine with me. I’m selfish like that.
I am still waiting for someone opposed to the tax to suggest effective ways we can reduce the pollution in the bay. Do they realize what the bay means to the economy of the state?
Citizen, do we even know how they are going to use this money to “save” our precious bay? I don’t think so..
“How they are going to spend it is kind of squishy. It can be spent to build and maintain stream and wetland restoration projects. And, of course, a lot of it will go to “monitoring, inspection, enforcement, review of stormwater management plans and permit applications and mapping of impervious surfaces.” In other words, hiring more bureaucrats to administer the rain tax program.
It can also be spent on “public education and outreach” (whatever that means) and on “grants to nonprofit organizations” (i.e. to the greenies who pushed the tax through the various levels of government).” from the gazette.
oh yes taking more money will make the bay very clean. What happened to the billions spent in downtown Baltimore with the promise of making the harbor “Swimable” by 2012? Its getting worse.
Well I know if we got rid of more stupid asses like you. There would be less hot air and CO2 going into the atmosphere thus reducing your precious climate change.
Classy and intelligent Sammy… you got it all.
I’m still waiting for someone who’s in favor of the tax to suggest how we can get Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware and Virginia to chip in their fair share. I’m waiting to hear not only how a business is expected to come up with the money that’s being reported in this article on a yearly basis while the brain dead of Annapolis continue to increase taxes and fees on everything else, but also exactly what is the plan for all that money? Or is this another “gambling for education” scam where they’ll substitute the new tax revenue for the money they used to put into the environment. I don’t think anyone in Annapolis can add and subtract numbers with more than two digits without getting confused. What money saving ideas has the Governor’s taskforce on waste and redundancy in government and spending come up with? Oh, that’s right, he doesn’t have one of those… there’s no need when the majority of the local populace seems to get off on being taxed – especially if it gets wasted… oooh, that was good baby. If it’s an idea coming out of Annapolis, it’s a bad idea that’s tailor made to fit squarely on the shoulders of the middle class leaving plenty of wiggle room to funnel money to the folks that keep them in power. I’m sure everyone that makes money off these initiatives will be closely tied to an Annapolis politician.
Like all the rest of the taxes and fees, it will be used for “pet” projects and to balance a bad budget.
A lot of invective in the above messages, but not one suggestion regarding an alternative solution. This is not about liberal, tree hugging greenies. It is about the state economy, watermen’s livelihood, crabs, rockfish, oysters, boating, fishing, and swimming in the bay. Sampson can call me anything he would like, but it won’t solve the problem. Let’s stop the labeling and name calling and get serious about giving our children clean water.
I’m not opposed to cleaning up the Bay. I’m not opposed to paying a tax to fund a concrete solution the issue. What I AM opposed to, is being robbed blind by the State of Maryland and the federal government, with no real plan, except to steal my money. If I tear up my driveway and dump it into the Bay, can I get a refund on my Rain Tax?