General Assembly budget leaders are one step closer to a fiscal showdown after the House of Delegates gave preliminary approval Wednesday to its version of the fiscal 2025 budget. The $63 billion spending plan is similar to the budget passed by the Senate. The two chambers differ significantly on undergirding this and future budgets with a $1.3 billion tax and gaming expansion package. Senate leaders, including Senate President Bill Ferguson of Baltimore City, have dismissed iGaming and combined tax reporting for corporations as nonstarters.
Governor Moore: So far in this budget debate, Governor Moore has embraced the position of the Senate leadership. Asked if that position would hold beyond the current year, Moore has said, “I just know that the bar for raising taxes not just this year, but for every single year for me, it’s going to be a very high bar.”
