MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (DC News Now) — Council President Evan Glass said the Montgomery County Council agreed on a compromise, following County Executive Marc Elrich’s proposal to increase the property tax by 10%.

Glass said the council reduced “the County Executive’s tax proposal by more than half – while still adding more than $210 million to the school system.”

“This is the largest increase to MCPS since before the great recession,” Glass said.

The Montgomery County Board of Education previously requested “an increase of $296,012,046, or 10.1%, compared to the FY 2023 operating budget.”

“Like districts across the nation, the needs of the 163,000 students in Maryland’s largest school system have dramatically increased since the pandemic. Additionally, the expectations for administrators and educators to solve all these new challenges without adequate support is daunting,” Glass said.

Elrich released a statement on the topic on Thursday.

“The budget, as passed, does not address all of the needs highlighted in the school budget, and we do not yet know how MCPS will use these funds since those decisions are not in the purview of the County Council, nor the Executive,” said County Executive Elrich. “It is my hope that the Council will work collaboratively with my team to make mid-year additions and changes if they are needed because of items not included in the budget as presented.”

The council’s final vote on the capital and operating budgets is scheduled for May 25.