TOWSON, MD – The Baltimore County Council has passed legislation requiring developers to pay impact fees for new residential construction.

It is the first time Baltimore County has authorized an impact fee. The Maryland General Assembly recently gave the county the power to pass such an ordinance, and Baltimore County Councilman David Marks immediately sponsored the legislation.

Under the bill, impact fee revenue must be spent locally within the Baltimore County Public School district where it is collected. For example, revenue from a development built in Perry Hall or White Marsh must be spent in the northeast.

“Under our current system, taxpayers subsidize the cost of new development,” Marks said. “This legislation shifts the responsibility onto those who are creating the strain on public schools.”

The legislation passed as part of the county’s budget process. Councilman Marks opposed separate legislation that increased the county income tax rate. He opposed an increase in the hotel tax and joined with his colleagues in killing the $3.50-per-line cell phone tax rate, instead applying the 8 percent rate charged to landline services only on voice communication.