The Baltimore City Council has approved its $4.6 billion budget, marking the largest in the city’s history. The decision was met with mixed reactions, as council members celebrated the passage while critics voiced concerns over increased taxes and fees.

David Williams, a taxpayer advocate, criticized the budget, saying, “Nobody should be cheering this budget because it’s more than last year and they’re raising taxes and fees.”

The new budget is over a billion dollars more than the city’s budget a decade ago, despite a decrease in population. Councilman Yitzy Schleifer, a Democrat, voted against the spending plan, stating, “It’s not fair to the people who built this city to now be forced to leave the city because of the high taxes and fees which this budget increases.”

Baltimore’s budget per capita is among the highest in the nation, at $7,648 per resident. This figure surpasses spending in other major cities, including Boston, Atlanta, Detroit, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles.

Despite some council members calling for a restructuring of spending, the budget passed with two dissenting votes.

“We’re not here to be a rubber stamp. We’re here to do a job,” said Democratic Councilman Mark Conway, who also voted against the budget.

Williams also challenged the City Council’s action.

“The city needs to be more serious about cutting spending and making sure they have the resources to have city agencies do their job and not ask city residents to pay a dime more in fees, taxes or anything else,” he said.

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