February 18th, 2017 by WCBC Radio
In the 2016 session of the Maryland General Assembly HB1016 the Public Safety and Policing Workgroup bill was passed. The bill contained a section that allows for a subtraction of the first $5,000 of earned income by a law enforcement officer who resides in the political subdivision in which the law enforcement officer is employed and the crime rate in the political subdivision exceeds the state’s crime rate. Local tax preparer Regina Hamm tells WCBC News that as a result of the vastly different crime rate statistics between Allegany County vs the city of Cumberland- the law creates an unfair situation for some officers. Cumberland Police Chief Charles Hinnant says the bill was probably designed as an incentive to get law enfrorcement officers to reside in communities with higher crime rates.
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