How can counties bear the burden?

Our Opinion

Friday, Feb. 13, 2009

This week, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert, Prince George's) introduced a bill to push the cost of teacher pensions onto county budgets, at least for new hires. And he's not the only one. Sens. E.J. Pipkin (R-Upper Shore) and David R. Brinkley (R-Frederick) want to split the cost of the pensions evenly between the state and counties.

At this point, teacher pensions account for $759 million of a $14 billion budget, and the amount grows every year.

Pensions are based on what the teachers are paid before they retire, and it's the counties who make that decision, by what they offer starting teachers and how much their pay is increased up until retirement. The state just has to foot the bill for whatever the county decides.

This state, however, holds the bragging rights of being the country's number one in education quality rankings, according to a national education publication, Education Week, and Calvert County is known as a county that values its school system and its teachers.

All of this hubbub on teacher pensions is supposedly linked to the $2 billion budget shortfall the state is facing, but Miller's bill wouldn't affect next year's budget. It would only apply to teachers who are hired after July 1.

The state is crunched to the point of forcing its employees to take five days off without pay this year, and unless federal stimulus money is sent this way, Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) is forecasting a need to lay off 700 employees.

But the counties are suffering, too. Prince George's and Anne Arundel counties may also be facing layoffs.

Calvert has been incredibly fortunate so far, but the idea of adding teacher pension to this county's budget probably keeps commissioners' President Wilson Parran (D) up at night.

It seems that when one entity is strapped for cash, that entity tries to squeeze someone or something else for more money.

But in this economy, there's nothing left to squeeze.

We can't afford tax increases to shore up the state's budget, especially when 5 percent of Marylanders are without jobs.

In truth, Miller does not even expect his bill to pass.

He told reporters this week that "it's going to let people know where the truth is and the differences in what the state's doing and what the counties are doing."

The state's budget is not the only one in crisis, though. You can't rob Peter to pay Paul if Peter's pockets are empty, too.