By Bryan Jaffe

ST. MARY'S TODAY

St. Mary’s Today interviewed St. Mary's Commissioner Larry Jarboe in December 2003 and he discussed his accomplishments so far and his future plans for the betterment of St. Mary’s County.

Saint Mary’s Today – What do you feel has been your greatest accomplishment since your election last November?

Larry Jarboe – Holding the tax line.  There was a record tax hike two years ago, of the local tax, and a property tax hike that brought it to the level of about eight years ago which I worked very hard during my first four years to bring down.

SMT – How were you able to hold the Tax line steady?

LJ – We had to do some serious downsizing.  We eliminated several positions including the Deputy Administrator, Facilities management and the Permits Director.  We also left numerous positions unfilled.

SMT – So how much did this downsizing save the county?

LJ – We saved about $500,000 which we earmarked for public education.  That allows us to spend an additional $400 per student, which is the first increase in per student spending in 3 years.  We were spending about $7000 per student before, and can now spend about $7400.

SMT – When you say that you are spending an additional $400 per student, is that written in stone?  Do you control that or is the actual distribution handled by the Board of Education?

LJ – Unfortunately we can’t oversee how the Bard of Education allocates its budget.  That’s more to do with the set up of Maryland by the state.   We’re the funding mechanism for the schools, but the Board of Education is responsible for the distribution.  But they plan to spend that money on teachers, texts and technology, all of which directly impact the students.

SMT – Is there any way for you to hold the Board of Education accountable for their expenditures?

LJ – The best way is for the public to take an active role in the Board elections.  People would pay more attention if they had taxation authority, but they don’t.  People don’t trust them with their wallets, but they trust them with their kids?  The Board is an important issue and not enough people get involved because most of the focus is on the Commissioners.  Most people don’t see how the Board of Education impacts the taxpayers, only St. Mary’s Today tells the rest of the story.

SMT – Going back to your holding the Tax Line, do you have any other plans to cut the cost of the county’s budget?

LJ – Actually, the Highest cost in government is personnel cost, so that’s where most of the savings are. 

SMT – In the four years between your terms, how many employees did the county add? 

LJ – I would say there was about a 10 percent increase, about 60 more employees.  Right now we have eliminated some of the positions and are holding the rest open.  We would be willing to open a position up, but only if the right person came along. 

SMT – Is there anything else you have done to reduce the size of the government?

LJ – We had a major consolidation recently.  We went from having 13 departments down to six major departments and two special offices.  It’s made things a lot easier because now we can call any department head and get a solid response.  Before it was so spread out that no one had any idea what anyone else was doing, and it led to situations in which the will of the Commissioners didn’t always make it down to the departments.  Now each department head knows every other head, and we have fewer appointed positions to fill giving us a stronger field of potential candidates. 

SMT – Any further plans for reducing the size of the government? 

LJ – There is not a lot of downsizing left to do without going into reverse.  Hopefully the Sheriff and the Board of Education will see our success and emulate it.

SMT – Are there any new developments at the airport?

LJ – Right now the plan is to expand hangar space.  The airport is a great opportunity to draw small aircraft and bring people into the area.  We are on the outside edge of the no-fly zone over Washington D.C., and people flying into the area need space. 

SMT – What about that Terminal, how much of it is being used?

LJ – It was used very effectively after Hurricane Isabel, but no, it’s not being used right now.

SMT – Do you think that it’s about time for a Police Services Study to examine the needs of the law enforcement agencies?

LJ – We are going to do one.  We need to review the actual needs of law enforcement versus the requested needs around budget time.  It’s going to evaluate the entire structure of service; the state police, the Patuxent River Police and the department of natural resources and we’re going to examine how they coordinate their efforts. 

SMT – After Hurricane Isabel, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) came in and promised to bring in home trailers.  That never happened and there are still families today left without anything.  Do you have any handle on the status of those?

LJ – We will get one.  

SMT – It’s been two months, it’s getting bitter cold outside now and these families haven’t been helped yet.  What’s going on with that and with the SBA (Small Business Administration) Loans?

LJ – We do need to find out what the picture is and ask are people getting the help they need.  What I am going to do during Commissioner time at the next meeting is put the issue on the agenda.  We’re going to get Robin Finnacom [Coordinator for Disaster Relief] in there and find out what’s been done and what needs to be done.  FEMA promised home trailers, and from what we are hearing, they didn’t come through on that level.  We’ll bring the issue up so that the public can see what was and what was not done.  We’re in Captain D-Ray’s right now; they have done a tremendous job coming back strong after getting hit hard by [Hurricane] Isabel. 

SMT – What was the extent of the damage caused by Hurricane Isabel locally? 

LJ – 27 families lost everything and need to start over.  But the value of the property is still worth a considerable amount, and hopefully they will build new and stronger homes up to modern standards.  With the right elevation and materials, new homes can be built that will be able to stand up to future hurricanes.  One thing that FEMA has done is referring people to the SBA to get loans for rebuilding. 

SMT – After being out of office for four years, why did you decide to get back in?  Did you feel you had unfinished business or were there new issues that brought you back?

LJ – I just came to a point in time where I decided to make a difference.  That was before I ran the first time.  When I first took office, the Commissioners were divided philosophically, but we were able to accomplish good things because we acted responsibly.  The following four years saw none of that.  Now we work well together again and are getting things done for the community.

SMT – What are planning to focus on next?

LJ – One great concern I have is to make the permit process utilized by private property owners simpler.   The Land use permit process is our number one complaint and our number one priority.  We are committed to find solutions for those wanting to improve their property.  In fact, there is a public hearing on December 16^th at 6:30 pm in room 14 of the Governmental Center.  I want all the people who want to improve their property to bring their issues to us so that we can draft solutions.  It’s so critical in St. Mary’s County to help people.

SMT – Any other plans?

LJ – Getting the next budget through.  The government is always two cycles behind the private sector, so it’s going to be some time before we catch up with the economic upswing.  We are going to do what we can to hold the line on taxes next year, then its time to start granting tax relief and working to reduce the income and property tax rates.  That should happen around the middle to the end of this term [of office].

SMT – What do you think could be done to help bring revenues into St. Mary’s County?

LJ - Riverboat Gambling.   As long as the boar leaves the dock and gets out into the water, I am all for it.  Another thing we need to look into is waterfront property.  We have 400 miles of coast and we need to take advantage of the economic opportunities there.  Waterfront Condos, charter boats, taking the kids out fishing.  We could stack condos on top of each other, put up 12 units and you have $6 million in tax assessment.  Up and down the east coast there are successfully water front communities that are close to major cities.   We fit that niche.  That’s how places in South Florida generate revenues and keep taxes low; they have a large second home tax base.   We would have people coming in and contributing to the community without placing a heavy burden on it.