Vacant building tax headed to full city council vote

by Daniel J. Sernovitz, 27 May 2010 -- A measure taxing the owners of vacant buildings in Baltimore has made it out of committee and is scheduled to be voted on Monday night.

The proposal introduced by City Council President Bernard C. "Jack" Young was passed on by the council's Taxation, Finance and Economic Development Committee Thursday and is aimed at helping the city close a $121 million budget deficit.

As the Baltimore Business Journal reported May 21, the proposal is one of several introduced by city council and Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to close the budget deficit, including the now-tabled tax on bottled beverages. Rawlings-Blake proposed a range of new taxes and fees to close the deficit, which she claimed were alternatives to drastic cuts to city services including the fire and police departments.

The vacant property tax also seeks to force property owners to fix up their homes, offices or industrial properties or pay for the right to keep them empty.

"The time has come for the owners of these vacant and unsafe properties that litter our cities to get their act together and do their part," Young said in a statement. "They will no longer receive a free pass for the burden they have inflicted on our residents and our city's overall image."

The measure, estimated to raise more than $1 million in new revenue, requires the owners of vacant properties to register their properties with the city. The owner of a vacant residential property would have to pay $100 to register their property. That rate goes up to $250 for the owner of a vacant commercial or industrial property.

The fine for failing to register a vacant multi-unit residential dwelling like an apartment building is $500 per unit. The fine for not registering an empty office or industrial building is $500.