Mr. Chairman, Members of the Council, Honored Guests, Friends, Fellow Citizens: Today marks the seventh time that I have come down to the Council Chambers to report on the state of Anne Arundel County and to present my proposed budget for the next fiscal year. Over these seven years, we may have pursued different pathways to change, but together, we have transformed this County in ways that will endure long after our terms of office have expired. Our legacy will be that we changed Anne Arundel County from a sleeping giant to a major force in this State. This County is now stronger than ever before, our quality of life is first-rate, and there is no looming uncertainty in our County’s future. Every one of my budgets and budget messages has held firm to certain of my core beliefs. First, public education is the number one funding priority. Second, the expansion of the defense, the high-tech, and the intelligence industry sectors is vital to sustaining the creation of high-paying jobs and economic growth of the county. Third, the preservation of our remaining agricultural lands is critical and must be accelerated. Fourth, the basic infrastructure of the County -- public safety - public works - public facilities -- must have our vigilant attention if we expect to maintain our quality of life. Fifth, conservative fiscal management of the County’s resources must be the cardinal rule -- that is how we have kept on course these seven years and that is how we will weather future economic squalls. We now set our course for the seventh year, but first we need to look at our results of the last six years. The total County dollars spent on public education have risen by more than 48%. The average teacher salary has increased by more than 30%, regardless of what you read in the newspapers. We have budgeted -- and hopefully spent - tens of millions of dollars on books and instructional materials for our children. We have spent nearly $320,000,000 funding new construction, renovation and repair of our schools. Our economic expansion is largely based on the growth of defense and homeland security contractors in the BWI corridor. This county ranks third in the State for defense contracts -- behind only St. Mary’s and Montgomery Counties. We now have 100 defense contractors located here. These companies received $1.16 billion in contracts, a 31% increase over the previous year. We lead the State in new job creation and we have one of the lowest unemployment rates. During my tenure, we have issued permits for more than $2 billion in commercial properties. In land preservation, we invested in our quality of life by saving nearly 12,000 acres from development. In land control, we slowed down residential growth through my "no school waiver" policy. From my first year in office, single-home permits have declined more than 20% and townhouse permits have declined by nearly 50%. We wisely invested in infrastructure. We reconstructed 38 miles of roads and repaved 335 miles of roads. We embraced technology in our departments and in our schools. We built libraries, police stations and fire stations. We opened new parks and expanded others. All this has been done through conservative fiscal management. We have managed to have a budget surplus every year. We cut spending. We downsized. And we have basically kept the property tax level. We have been able to increase the average firefighter’s pay by 34% and the average police officer’s pay by 44%. I am very proud of what we have accomplished. I am equally proud to submit this budget for fiscal year 2006. This is the best budget yet. The proposed operating budget exceeds $1.1 billion and the proposed capital budget exceeds $232 million. Every citizen will benefit in some way. In the coming fiscal year, the property tax rate will go down. This County already has one of the lowest property tax rates in the State. When you scan the region, the tax rates tell the story: Baltimore City is $2.308; Carroll County is $1.048; Baltimore County is $1.115; Harford County is $1.072; and Howard County is $1.044. Our County’s tax rate is set for 93.1 cents ($.931) in the coming year and the City of Annapolis is set for 55.5 cents ($.555). We have one of the lowest income tax rates in the region, a rate that has gone unchanged by this County for 40 years and will not change this year. In the last six years, property values have increased 74%. There is every indication this trend will continue. The increase has meant an unprecedented escalation of recordation taxes. These tax revenues have more than doubled over the last few years. This type of tax revenue, which will rise and fall with the fluctuations of the real estate market, has to be prudently invested in one-time infrastructure improvements. We cannot and will not develop any lasting dependence on this level of tax revenue. The lesson of the rise and quick fall of capital gains tax revenues serves as fair warning. This proposed budget reaffirms our commitment to public education and our teachers. The Board of Education requested an increase in County funding of $48.8 million and my proposed budget gives the Board $49.6 million. The money is not allocated exactly the way the Board wanted because the Board did not include increases in debt service and self insurance costs in its budget request. These funds are now included because they are not voluntary payments. Since the first day of my first campaign, I pledged that all available new funding would be directed at the teachers and the classrooms. This proposed budget lives up to that pledge. Our teachers are the ones that will make our school system a first rate public school system. The new education budget has funds for 147 new teachers and 60 new instructional aides. The budget includes funding to keep 29 teachers and 16 instructional aides whose salaries were formerly funded through expiring Federal and State grant programs. The 147 new teachers are spread out in various initiatives. There are 53 new teachers and 27 aides for the All-Day Kindergarten Program. There are 25 new teacher aides and one teacher to meet basic instructional needs for reading intervention. There are 10 mentor teachers and 4 math intervention teachers. There are 48 new teachers to reduce class size at the high school level. There are 6 new teachers, 5 new instructional aides, and 4 speech pathologists for early intervention and special needs programs. In fact, this budget fully funds all of the Board of Education’s special needs requests of $70 million. I have worked in special education and I know - from a professional and personal level - that children with special needs cannot wait for programs. There are two new teachers for the next grade of the pilot International Baccalaureate program at Annapolis High School and Old Mill High School. This proposed budget does not fund the expansion of the IB program into other schools. We need to evaluate the outcome of this pilot program before leaping ahead. We first need to direct available dollars to teachers. We will address other needs of the middle and high school students by funding six new teachers for the AVID program and adding 13 new teachers for the gifted and talented program. At every school I visit, teachers tell me their concerns about the paperwork. My budget funds new electronic grading technology to help decrease time teachers spend on paperwork. Teachers will also be pleased to learn that more than $500,000 has been funded for teacher classroom funds. I have said repeatedly that no teacher should have to buy school supplies out of his or her own pocket and this budget should end the need to do so. In my many community visits, I continually hear about the need for textbooks. This budget funds $13 million for new textbooks. In just a three-year period, we will have funded $23,000,000 dedicated to textbooks with just County funds. That adds up to more than $300 for each child - - K through 12 - - in our school system. In the past six-year period, we funded more than $85 million on text books and instructional supplies, using a combination of federal, State and County funds. That adds up to more than $1,100 for each child - - K through 12 - - in our school system. My proposed budget has sufficient funds to give all teachers a 4% raise. I believe that a 4% raise is more important than funding other choices like an accelerated expansion of the IB program or an expansion of the Board’s public relations office. The choice is with the Board of Education but I strongly recommend that the Board quickly resolve both the economic and non-economic deadlock with the teachers. We acknowledge the staff in the School Health Program. They provide important health services to the students in our schools. The $14.5 million appropriation is found in the general county budget. Next year, new staff is added and the nurses and support staff will receive 3% raises. This proposed budget fully funds the Board of Education’s $80.4 million Capital Budget request. I have added an additional $13 million for school construction the Board hoped the State would fund this year but was not funded. We are able to do so with "one-time" funds. Even though the Board did not ask, I have decided to accelerate three specific capital projects, each by one year. These projects include: $5 million for the Lake Shore Elementary School, $7 million for the Arundel Science Lab and Addition, and $7 million for the Gambrills Elementary School. This sets the wheels in motion to work on the much needed Severna Park Middle School, which has been pushed forward three years. I have also accelerated second-year construction funding for four capital projects, each by one year. These projects include Harman and Pasadena Elementary Schools, the North County High School Physical Education Facility, and the completion of the air conditioning for Arundel High School. We are not going to wait for the State to appropriate its share of the costs for Arundel High School - - the teachers and students have waited too long for air conditioning and they are not going to wait any more. Our other branch of public education is our renowned community college. I have fully funded their requested operating budget. Included in this budget are 14 new faculty members to help the institution continue to excel. There are COLA and step raises for the entire college community. Also, there are funds in the capital budget for the Careers Building. We are fortunate to have an outstanding library system in our county. The capital budget includes monies for systemic upgrades and expansion of the South County Library and the operating budget has been increased. We are also fortunate to have a first class system of public safety. This proposed budget continues my strong commitment to our first responders. Our citizens require a high level of police, fire and emergency services. Our police and our fire forces risk their lives to meet that standard, and deserve all the support we can give them. I can report that violent crime is down for the 3rd straight year and our police department was successful in solving a major "cold case" involving the murder of three females in the 1980s and 1990s. This year we hired 61 new police officers and this budget has funding for 14 more police officers. We have to take steps to insure that our police force has the best crime-fighting tools available so we have accelerated the installation of the mobile data computers in each and every police vehicle. We are advancing the funding for the addition to the Western District Police Station from Fiscal Year 2007 to Fiscal Year 2006 because we have to meet the growing needs of this expanding area of our County. A number of the new uniformed police officer positions will be assigned to this District while other new officers will be assigned to the Northern District "hot spot" and the Southern District. With the assistance of the Cliff Roop Foundation, the department has placed Automated External Defibrillators in Southern District cars and in our district police stations. The value of the AEDs is well appreciated by County Employee Gary Robert Glennon. He is here with us today thanks to an AED and some quick thinking officers who saved this county employee when he suffered a heart attack right in front of them. Mr. Glennon, Captain Athena Marpel, Lt. J. Doyle Batten, Sgt. Kathy Pleasant, Cpl. William Schepleng, Cpl. Brian Smith, Officer Thomas Middleton and Booking Officer Larry Branson, will you please stand? And, Ken Brannon, Brenda Desjardins, and Bob Eitel from the Cliff Roop Foundation, will you please stand? Our Fire Department has made major progress as well. A record 152 new personnel are being hired during a monumental recruiting effort that will strengthen the department and improve its overall effectiveness. The increased staffing reflected in this budget will also reduce the County’s historic reliance on overtime, because 113 of the new personnel will be deployed to a fourth shift beginning on January 1, 2007. I am pleased to note that the Fire Department was the first in the State to apply Phase II Technology in our 911 operations center. This will enable the Department to determine the exact location of a caller dialing 911 from a cell phone. We will soon be opening the new Severn Fire Station. We are funding the replacement Marley Fire Station in Fiscal Years 2006 and 2007 and we are funding the design and construction phase of the Deale Fire Station in Fiscal Years 2007 and 2008. On the recommendation of our new Fire Chief, I have included $4.5 million for the design and construction of the Annapolis Neck Fire Station this coming year. There are other new projects in the works. To help meet the health needs for our citizens in North County, I have included $500,000 in grant money for North Arundel Hospital to support the new Women’s Health Center program. I have also included $500,000 to convert the former Odenton Library into an expanded senior center for the area. In my last Inaugural Address, I announced the creation of a task force to look at ways our public servants could both live and work in Anne Arundel County. My Workforce Housing Task Force then studied programs to make that a reality. We are working to implement a local version of a highly successful national program that will provide opportunities for families that have limited funds to buy a home or are credit- challenged. These families, with a one percent personal investment, will be able to lease a home for three years, and then take title to the home if they have made their payments on time. This program will be implemented through bond sales and will be offered first to our local County workforce families whose incomes fall in the range of $60-80,000 per year. The first offering will be approximately $50,000,000 and it is anticipated that this will provide ownership opportunities for 100-125 families. In the environmental area, this budget continues my commitment to preserving our diminishing farmland and open space. We must save every acre we can before it is too late. I am proposing to use Program Open Space funds with County and federal funds to preserve the 575-acre Contee Farm in Edgewater. The farm’s prime waterfront location, with more than one mile of shoreline, makes it a number one target for the developer’s bulldozers. This farm should be protected for the benefit of all our citizens. This budget also includes funding to help purchase the 400 acre Rockhold Creek Farm on Sudley Road in West River, one of the largest working farms in our County. This Administration is building up an arsenal of tools to continue the aggressive enforcement of critical area violations. We just completed the first aerial survey of the Critical Area in the State. This was done with our new police helicopter and video camera. A CD Rom is now available to the public and for use by our inspectors when investigating complaints. Our inspectors, often with the advantage of our helicopter, continue to identify violations of the Critical Area Law and then enforce compliance with the law. Our County Attorneys have had numerous wins in court against those who knowingly harm our environment. I spoke earlier of the absolute need for infrastructure investments with one-time money. As the Council knows, the number one capital project for the Department of Recreation and Parks has always been funding to rehabilitate and improve our existing County parks. My budget proposal includes $4.7 million in "one time" funding for 177 projects to eliminate the backlog in park maintenance and upkeep. These funds will be used Countywide to make our parks even better places for our citizens to enjoy. These projects range from basketball court replacement at Freetown Park, to correcting chronic drainage problems at Cape St. Claire Park, to replacing outfield fences in Deale, and adding restrooms at Jug Bay's River Farm. We will also be able to upgrade all of our park’s concession and restroom buildings. I want to personally thank everyone who took the time to write and e-mail me, especially the children, about the Quiet Waters’ Ice Rink. I have included $300,000 in this budget so you can skate at Quiet Waters next year. We have funded $3.5 million for ball fields at Lake Shore Athletic Complex and the Looper Park. We also have funded $500,000 to finish the next phase of the popular WB & A Trail, bringing it to Patuxent Road. We have fully funded $1.5 million for the first phase of the Broadneck Trail, and we have allotted $400,000 for master planning and initial improvements in the Pasadena tract of land that was donated by the Weinberg Foundation. I can report to you that we are negotiating a long-term lease with the City of Baltimore to manage the historic Fort Smallwood Park. This proposed budget funds $1 million for a feasibility study and the environmental clean up of the park. When I first took office, the County was not investing adequately in maintaining our roads. All of my budgets increased our level of spending to help keep our roads in a safe condition. During the last six years, my Administration has invested more than $67.5 into maintaining our County roads, but much more needs to be done. This proposed budget will help tackle the backlog of maintenance - accumulated over decades - on our County roads. All areas of the County will get a share of $20 million in new "one time" funds to bring deteriorating roads up to an acceptable standard. I have directed the Department of Public Works to specifically target roads that are in our older communities. I have also increased annual funding for road repairs by $6 million in Fiscal Year 2006 and in each successive year of our Capital program, bringing our annual commitment to $17 million. The waters of the Chesapeake Bay touch more than 500 miles of shoreline in our County. To help protect this unique County, State and National treasure, this budget includes $5.6 million in funding for improvements to streams, creeks and other waterways, including the Crofton Tributary, the Bodkin/Main Dredging Project, Windsor Ridge and Broadneck Road. These capital projects, coupled with our vigorous enforcement of Critical area violations, should show that we are doing our part to help protect the Chesapeake. We all know that County government will never have all the funds to pay for the level of services our citizens want. We depend mightily on volunteers to fill the gap in our senior centers, recreation centers, and our schools. We also heavily depend on the hundreds of volunteer members of our County’s Boards and Commissions. We simply could not get the work of government done without them. I want to thank the chairman and members of the Planning Advisory Board for their professionalism and for volunteering countless hours each year. They pore over every capital project and make specific recommendations, which I try to follow as often as I can. Will the members of the Planning Board please stand so that you may be recognized? We continue to support the non-profit programs that help women, children, and others in need of help. This budget also continues our commitment for senior services within the Community Center at Woods. We also increased funds to continue our long-term commitment to the Anne Arundel County Cultural Arts Foundation and a number of regional cultural institutions. These commitments enhance our citizens’ quality of life. This proposed budget includes a 3% COLA and merit increases for all of our County employees. They represent the heart and soul of County government. During my years as County Executive, I have seen our County’s best at their best. I can speak at length about many amazing acts of public service and dedication. The real proof is that our County has been recognized for excellence, with six national awards and numerous State and professional awards this year alone. We should applaud our Health Department professionals who held highly successful flu clinics for 20,000 of our residents during this winter’s nationwide shortage of vaccine. We should commend the staff in Planning and Zoning and the Office of Law who tackled the enormous task of rewriting the subdivision and zoning code for the first time in three decades. We should thank the Department of Public Works personnel who made sure the West County Library and the new PEG studio in Glen Burnie were completed and opened. This County has an array of companies that develop and apply technology to analyze and interpret vast amounts of data. In this era of homeland security, these companies bring high paying jobs while they help protect the security of our nation. Indeed, they bring national stature to our County. We have a very close relationship with NSA, the Nation’s intelligence center. We partnered with NSA to make our Chesapeake Innovation Center the first homeland security incubator in the United States. Our other partners, who have poured dollars and talent into the CIC, are Northrop Grumman, Innovent Nokia, and Bearing Point. NSA just awarded a $445,000 contract to the CIC to help identify small companies that might benefit NSA and our country’s security and response capability. We expect some of the companies in the incubator to soar onto the national scene or to quietly shore up our national security. The least they will do is make their mark in information technology. During the past six years, the County has itself looked to information technology to better serve our citizens. Our website, our E permit program, our transportation program for our seniors - - these are just some examples of your County in the digital age. You will find funding in every department of government, and the Office of Technology, to move the County ahead in this ever-changing wireless era. The diversity of our County workforce is being matched with the more recent diversity of contractors that do business with our County. I am personally committed to a marketplace that expands opportunity for everyone and uses the best means to achieve success. Some jurisdictions trumpet their success by using mandatory set-asides. In this County, we work toward genuine marketplace inclusion on a voluntary basis with hard work, not through legislation. The results are impressive. In the last four years, we increased contracts for minority and women-owned businesses from $11 million to $20 million. Change - - at least lasting change - - demands commitment and persistence. In my proposed budget, you will find the funding to complete the Bates project. This major project is a symbol of unwavering commitment to change and 24 years of persistence to achieve it. The Wiley H. Bates High School holds a unique place in the history of this County. The senior housing, the senior center, and the Boys & Girls Club that will soon occupy its hallowed halls will keep alive the Bates spirit. I intend to be present at the grand opening before I leave office as your County Executive. We have witnessed, and have often orchestrated, sweeping changes in our County. We have some eighteen months left to make the changes essential to ensure that our giant of a County is thriving when we leave office. We should do so. This County is on a firm foundation. Let’s pass this budget and then move on to change what needs to be changed this year so that the foundation is stronger next year. Let’s keep our eye on the future. I am reminded of the words of President Kennedy who said: "Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future." Let’s not miss the future. Let’s not miss any opportunity we have to set the future course of this great County. If we do that -- today and tomorrow -- then one day we will proudly share the credit for the legacy of Anne Arundel County. Thank you. | 
