Council Meeting Highlights, December 10, 2024

12/12/2024

Category: County Council

The Talbot County Council held their regular meeting on December 10 at 5 p.m.; all Council members were present.

Accommodations Tax Increase Request

Cassandra Vanhooser, Director of Economic Development & Tourism presented an overview of the request to the Talbot County Council. On August 27, the Council hosted a work session on a proposal from the Talbot County Tourism Board to consider a county-wide accommodations tax rate increase of 2%, to be introduced in the upcoming Maryland legislative session and to become effective on January 1, 2026. The last increase in the accommodations tax was 20 years ago. 

Additionally, during that work session, Martha Sparks, Finance Director, requested Council consideration to support a change to §20-426 of the Maryland Local Government Code and §172-8 of the Talbot County Public Accommodations Tax Code to reflect that a penalty of 10% on the unpaid accommodations tax shall be imposed within one month after the payment date.  Currently establishments have a period of 120 days to remit the tax which impacts the collection, reporting, compliance monitoring and distribution of the accommodations tax to the County and its municipalities.

Accommodations tax revenue in our municipalities can be used to promote tourism, enhance community services, improve infrastructure, and generate revenue in the towns from which the tax is collected. Outside one mile radius of the municipality, Talbot County collects the revenue, and as outlined in legislation, funds can be used solely for tourism and economic development efforts.

In FY24, a total of $2,018,420 in revenue was collected. Talbot County retained $451,084; the remainder was distributed to towns based on where the tax was collected.

Following the work session in August, the Tourism Board and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, at the request of Council, continued to engage local businesses, elected officials from the municipalities, and lodging partners, to gather additional information and input.

The results of their efforts were presented to Council for consideration which included favorable votes from Talbot County’s five municipalities. The Department also hosted a public meeting to gather community feedback, and launched a survey for lodging partners, including the list of short-term rentals regulated by the County licensing process. Results of the survey were provided to Council and can be reviewed by the public on the County website.

The Council voted unanimously in support of submitting a letter to the local delegation requesting introduction of legislation to reduce the remittance period of the accommodations tax to one month.  Following discussion and public comments, by a vote of 2-3, the Council opposed the request for an increase in the accommodations tax rate as recommended by the Tourism Board.

Amendments to the Comprehensive Water and Sewer Plan

Four resolutions to amend the Comprehensive Water and Sewer Plan to reprogram properties from “unprogrammed” and “W-3/S-3” to “W-1/S-1” immediate priority status were introduced by various Council members. The requested amendments will be sent to the Public Works Advisory Board and the Planning Commission for review and recommendation before returning to Council.

The resolutions are for the following properties:

Other Business

  • County Manger Clay Stamp presented one board nomination for Council’s consideration:
    • Police Accountability Board – By a vote of 4-1 Council approved the appointment of Brian Naranjo to represent St. Michaels.
  • Department of Parks and Recreation requested approval to renew a management contract with Coastline Pool Services for the operation and maintenance of the George Murphy Pool and Bay Hundred Community Pool for the 2025 season in the amount of $290,811. Council unanimously approved this request.
  • Talbot County Facilities Maintenance requested approval to replace a chiller and cooling tower in the County Courthouse. The cost of installation is $283,767 and work will be completed by Electrical Automation Services Inc. (EASI) by piggybacking on a Wicomico County contract. This request is a part of an approved FY25 capital project. Council unanimously approved the request.
  • Easton Airport Manager, Micah Risher, requested approval to secure equipment and plan for installation of a new Instrument Landing System (ILS) for Runway 4. Easton Airport’s current ILS is over 50 years old, and service has degraded in recent years. As part of the Airfield Modernization Program, the airport will be working with FAA to install a newer, more capable system with a goal of having it operational to coincide with the opening of the new runway in October 2026. After all FAA and MAA reimbursements are received for this project, the total cost to the Easton Airport for the project will be $15,067.65. Council unanimously approved the request.   
  • Council unanimously approved acceptance of grant funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in the amount of $979,267 to implement green infrastructure for a project at the Tilghman on the Chesapeake Community Association (TOCCA). The scope of the project includes the construction of approximately 665 linear feet of living shoreline with a vented marsh sill, concrete oyster breaks, marsh mitigation, and sand dune and stormwater features along Harris Creek on Tilghman Island for the purpose of protecting residential infrastructure from climate impacts and to serve as a demonstration site for the Talbot County Green Infrastructure Plan. Council Member Pete Lesher applauded the efforts of staff and the group in working together on this project.
  • Council also unanimously approved entering into a Memorandum of Understanding with Easton Utilities to allow for placement of fiberoptic cable in the recently installed Broad Creek bore sleeve. Easton Utilities will pay the County $113,000 for the cost of installation and assist with maintenance of the conduit. The cable will provide redundancy for broadband services in the area, improving access to the community.

The Council’s next legislative meeting will be held on January 14, 2025 beginning at 5:00 p.m. in the Bradley Meeting Room located in the South Wing, Talbot County Courthouse, 11 North Washington Street, Easton.  The meeting open to the public.

On Tuesday, January 7, 2025, the County Council will be meeting with the Board of Education.  That meeting is being held at 5:00 p.m. at the Easton High School Culinary Arts Program and is open to the public.

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