A new opinion column in The Washington Post discusses the Montgomery County Water Quality Protection Charge (WQPC), also known as the “Rain Tax”. The column is written by Devin L. Battley, president of the Lindbergh Park Owners Association in Gaithersburg, which represents business property owners in the Lindbergh Park development. Pels Law is representing the Lindbergh Park Owners Association in their fight against Montgomery County.
In the column, Mr. Battley concludes:
The Lindbergh Park case is the first WQPC challenge to reach the Tax Court since the county changed the appeals law in 2018 to require cases to be reviewed by the Maryland Tax Court. Only one other taxpayer has challenged the county’s WQPC since the change in the appeals law. The county is fighting this case tooth and nail, and has indicated that it will appeal the Tax Court’s ruling. Again.
This is absurd and a colossal waste of taxpayer funds.
Wouldn’t the thousands of taxpayer dollars that the county is spending — plus the court time and costs — to fight the Lindbergh Park property owners be better spent going after owners who do not treat their storm-water runoff? Or, even better, on actual cleanup efforts?
The county must take an objective look at this misguided waste of taxpayer money.
Read the full opinion piece here on The Washington Post: