Yesterday afternoon, Comptroller Brooke Lierman hosted a gathering of policy stakeholders to discuss her legislative agenda and how it would benefit Maryland taxpayers. The event took place in the Assembly Room of the Louis L. Goldstein Treasury Building and featured speakers from various organizations, including the CASH Campaign of Maryland, the Maryland Society of Accounting and Tax Professionals, and TurnAround Inc.
During the gathering, the Comptroller outlined her legislative priorities, which include three bills. The first is the 21st Century Financial Systems Council-Establishment HB709 / SB659, which seeks to create a directive to investigate, adopt, and implement a new general accounting system for the entire state government. This legislation is aimed at replacing Maryland’s outdated accounting and payment processing systems to ensure timely state agency payments and balance the state’s checkbooks every year.
The second bill is the Supporting All Taxpayers Act of 2023 HB707 / SB660, which seeks to establish an Office of the State Taxpayer Advocate within the Comptroller’s Office. This office would provide at least six staff members to assist Marylanders with timely resolutions to tax issues and work to identify and address systemic challenges to efficient tax processing and problem resolution for Marylanders.
The third and final bill is the Tax Parity for Delayed Unemployment Insurance Payments HB708 / SB661, which seeks to establish a rebate program to refund the taxes withheld from or paid as a result of UI payments received in 2022. This legislation is aimed at bringing the recipients of these payments into parity with other taxpayers whose benefits were both earned and paid during the timeframe envisioned by the RELIEF Act.
The event was attended by various stakeholders, including Beverly Winstead of IRS Help Attorneys, Tammy Bresnahan of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), and Stacey Mink of The Impact Project.