Expenditure pressures over the next six years will be sizable from enrollment growth at both MCPS and the College, from service level improvement demands, and from wage and benefit proposals. Competition will remain fierce between services and capital investment. We most likely should presume a continuation of citizen insistence that tax rates be held constant or reduced over the coming six-year period. In this environment, we must take great care to manage our fiscal affairs well. In addition, we should consider several other factors when reviewing the enclosed material.
Fiscal planning has value in itself, given the importance of accountability for the public s money.
It provides a framework for thinking about the challenges of the future, and it encourages disciplined review of options that recognize the uncertainties of tomorrow. Fiscal planning, however, must be done in parallel with the policy and program agendas of elected officials so that there is mutual reinforcement. Absent a major change in community conditions, one should expect considerable stability in fiscal plans, because they reflect a continuity of values and priorities among citizens and their leaders. Nonetheless, each year s fiscal plan will bring adjustments that reflect updated assessments of current conditions and, especially, future opportunities and needs. What is inescapable will be the need to choose among competing uses of public funds as County officials seek to sustain and improve the quality of life that is the reason so many families and businesses have come to Montgomery County.