Posted on 02/22/25
| News Source: WBAL
Baltimore, MD - Feb. 22, 2025 - Maryland state lawmakers are looking for another $200 million to $500 million to cut from the budget, 11 News has learned.
State lawmakers called it an unprecedented tight budget year, framed around headwinds of uncertainty from Washington and announcements of more federal cuts.
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Senate Budget and Taxation Committee Chairman Guy Guzzone, D-District 13, told 11 News this is by far the most extraordinary budget process that he has ever been through.
The Maryland Department of Legislative Services provided a list of hundreds of options.
“We can do a number of things, in some cases, to backfill and, some cases, to bank some money,” Guzzone told 11 News. “There are cuts in there that really push the limits of our values.”
Additional budget-cutting options include tweaking the Medicaid formula, adjusting scholarships, reducing cyber workforce grants and deleting vacant job positions, 11 News has learned.
State lawmakers pushed back budget deadlines by six days to mid-March in order to wait and see what Congress does, 11 News has learned.
Maryland’s budget relies heavily on federal funding, as 6% of the state’s workforce is employed by the federal government.
| REPUBLICANS CONCERNED: Maryland state Republican legislative leaders are taking issue with some pieces of the governor’s 2026 budget proposal, particularly when it comes to tax code changes and 18 instances of new or increased taxes and fees. Here’s why.
“Of course, Medicaid, education spending, [Federal Emergency Management Agency] grants, generally, and federal contractors are probably the areas that have the biggest impact. So, we know something is coming. We don’t know the extent,” said Senate President Bill Ferguson, D-District 46.
The Maryland Board of Revenue Estimates plans to release revenue projections on March 9, the numbers of which will likely influence lawmakers’ budget-cutting decisions.