Will Maryland Repeal the 'Rain Tax'?

Md. Gov.-Elect Hogan Confident 'Rain Tax' Will Be Scrapped

Hogan, a Republican, was responding to comments Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller made to reporters on Tuesday. Miller, a Democrat, noted the possibility of passing legislation so that 10 local jurisdictions could pay for storm-water management needs out of their budgets, rather than charging residents a specific fee to fight Chesapeake Bay pollution carried by rain runoff.

Hogan said changing the 2012 law won't eliminate the need to pay for storm-water management. But he says Maryland can comply with federal requirements to fight pollution without imposing an added fee.

The 'Rain Tax' for those unfamiliar with it, is not actually a tax on rain, rather it is tax on the impervious surfaces on property in the 10 regions of MD affected. It was designed to satisfy an EPA mandate to raise money for storm-water management. It is an extremely unpopular tax in Maryland, and it may well have contributed to the anti-tax Hogan being elected governor in MD in the last election.

While I'm not in one of the affected jurisdictions, there are some aspects of the tax I find very objectionable, particularly how severely affects the more rural properties of the areas. I think the urban jurisdictions with big storm water problems need to find more equitable ways of paying for its management.