Without increasing property taxes, Anne Arundel County Executive Steuart Pittman is proposing a budget that he said provides some protection against the chaotic changes to the federal government under President Donald Trump.

“The theme is protecting our people,” said Pittman, a Democrat, in an interview ahead of his presentation of the budget Thursday to the County Council.

Pittman likened crafting the approximately $2.4 billion operating budget, his seventh as the county’s top elected official, to those that his administration put together during the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, which upended the economy by putting countless people out of work.

This time, he said, fiscal uncertainty is attributable to Maryland’s budget crunch and Trump’s canceling of grants, launching of a trade war and dramatic downsizing of the federal workforce, which is felt acutely in Anne Arundel, where about 10% of residents rely on federal incomes.

“We came into it with a lot of concern about whether we would be able to continue the progress our county has been making [with] public safety and education and health and human service work,” Pittman said. “We were able to. And the reason we were able to is that our county has been very, very careful in the way we’ve done our budgets. We’ve been, you could say, fiscally responsible.”

Under his proposal, Pittman said, the county’s property tax rate would decline from 98.3 to 97.7 cents per every $100 of assessed property. Income tax rates are unchanged from last year.

“I’m thrilled that he is holding the line on taxes,” said Councilman Nathan Volke, a Republican who represents Pasadena, after Pittman’s presentation Thursday. “I think that is important especially given a lot of people’s economic concerns of just where the world is right now.”

The proposed budget calls for spending about $100 million more compared to the last fiscal year, with a record $52 million year-over-year increase for the public schools — about half of the increase the school board requested — and boosts to the police, fire and health departments.

Pittman also proposes setting aside $10 million to backfill potential cuts to the approximately $33 million in federal grants the county expects and establishing a $300,000 fund to support families who are affected by Trump’s immigration crackdown, which has seen many people deported without court hearings.

“We’re creating a fund both to help children who’ve lost a parent, breadwinner, to deportation as well as to provide legal assistance so there is due process in immigration hearings,” Pittman said. “We’re working with a lot of local nonprofits and churches on that effort.”

With Trump imposing tariffs on imports from much of the world, many economists are predicting a recession. Pittman said he is preparing the county for that downturn by adding the legal maximum to its rainy day fund. The county can tap into that money only if actual revenue falls short of projections.

Pittman said he was proud that “we are able to step up in a time when others are struggling to continue the progress that we’ve made and to protect our people, who are literally scared right now, scared of the impacts of what these changes at the federal level are having and that we can assure people that this county has a strong economic base, a strong financial foundation.”

Councilmember Julie Hummer, a Democrat who represents western Anne Arundel County, said in a February interview that she wants to be conservative with spending in this budget to make up for potential cuts to federal funds, almost all of which are “directed to our most vulnerable residents.”

Federal funding, Hummer said after Pittman’s speech, supports the elderly, people with disabilities, special education and opioid overdose prevention.

“I’m very encouraged the county executive has put aside a fund that will be specifically for anything that is cut,” said Hummer, who is the chair of the council.

The proposed $224.7 million for police represents a $6 million increase from last year’s budget and includes money that the department requested to fund an additional shift of its new Real Time Information Center, a high-tech intelligence unit that helps officers respond to and solve crimes on the fly.

Pittman’s budget proposal calls for $12.6 million more to go to the fire department compared to the last fiscal year, bringing that agency’s budget to $212.3 million. The increase, Pittman said, will allow fire officials to hire five new instructors for the training academy, enabling it to train two classes each year rather than one.

While Republican council members did not applaud when Pittman talked about his efforts to protect the county from the Trump administration, the council as a whole appeared to support investment in public safety and education during the speech.

“That will be what makes our community as strong as possible,” Lisa Rodvien, a Democrat whose district includes Annapolis, said after Pittman’s presentation.

The $1.18 billion that Pittman proposes allocating to Anne Arundel County Public Schools represents about half of the county’s budget.

Those dollars would fund a 3% cost-of-living increase for unionized school employees, while providing for 28 new special education positions, 10 English teachers, two “bilingual facilitators,” 11 new social-emotional learning staffers and 14 program managers for schools serving areas with the highest levels of poverty.

Pittman described the record year-over-year increase to education as warranted, noting that the school system has recorded improvements across several academic measures.

Board of Education President Robert Silkworth and Superintendent Mark Bedell applauded the proposed budget in statements following Pittman’s presentation, which they attended.

“The County Executive and his team have worked very hard in what are complex and difficult financial times to continue to support the students of our county and our AACPS employees,” Silkworth said. “We will obviously dive deeper into the proposal in the coming weeks, and I look forward to working with the County Council to continue to make our school system even better.”

Bedell said Pittman promised to invest in the county’s students when the pair first met in 2022.

“This budget is yet further fulfillment of that promise and a significant step forward as we continue to help every student Belong, Grow, and Succeed,” Bedell said.

The school system anticipates $90 million in federal funds in the coming fiscal year against the backdrop of Trump’s crusade against schools teaching about race and diversity, equity and inclusion.

“The exposure on the federal side is in the back of their minds always and in the back of our mind, but you can’t plan for what hasn’t been cut. You have to budget what‘s been funded,” Pittman said. “This is based on contractual obligations with the federal government.”

Pittman noted that the Trump administration has faced court challenges when cutting grants without congressional approval.

After Pittman’s presentation Thursday, the council has about six weeks to finalize the budget. The council can cut from the budget unilaterally but cannot add to it without working with the county executive.

“I look forward to digging into the details and seeing if there’s anything we can do to make it even better,” Rodvien said.