MSA SC 5339-28-1
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1984
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
Seal of the Office of the Comptroller, scanned from official letterhead
See article uploaded in notes describing the history of this seal.
Source: "The Maryland Comptroller or is that controller? And just what is it", Educational Pamphlet (see T02-4033)
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MSA SC 5339-28-2
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1950/07/02
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Description
Editorial from The Baltimore Sun, 2 July 1950, the day after the death of Comptroller James J. Lacy.
The editorial outlines Lacy's accomplishments in office:
--Lacy was the first comptroller to initiate an "effort to catch State income-tax dodgers." The effort was ongoing and successful.
--Lacy set up a special division to collect the sales tax.
--Lacy set up a "series of improvements in the monthly and annual financial statements issued by the comptroller's office," making it easier for state officials to keep track of the state's money.
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MSA SC 5339-28-3
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1998/07/15
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
"Swann sworn in as interim comptroller," The Baltimore Sun, 15 July 1998.
Article states that Robert L. Swann, comptroller after Louis Goldstein's death in 1998,
had two priorities:
--to continue setting up a program that would allow Marylanders to file their income
taxes from home using home computers.
--to make the state's computer system Y2K compliant.
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MSA SC 5339-28-4
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2000/08/12
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
"Butt Out: Schaefer's War Against Cigarette Smugglers."
The Daily Record, 12 August 2000.
This article states that, until Schaefer became comptroller in 1998,
the problem of cigarette smuggling in Maryland had been ignored.
Smugglers were taking advantage of a difference in tobacco taxes
among East Coast states to illegally ship truckloads of cigarettes
from state to state without the proper permits or bills of lading,
so that the sales tax was being evaded in Maryland. In addition to
cracking down on the cigarette smugglers, Schaefer is also using the
comptroller's office to arrest people who are buying furniture tax-free
in North Carolina and reselling it in Maryland without charging
Maryland state taxes.
His reasons are twofold:
1) To collect money legitimately due the state
2) To protect Maryland businesses and keep them comptetitive.
During FY 2000, Schaefer's initiatives in this area saved the state
$120,886 in taxes, according to the article.
But a big problem is that state law says that the state must
resell the cigarettes, so the state auctions them off to the highest
bidder, in effect becoming a cigarette smuggler itself.
But in many cases the cigarette manufacturers themselves buy
the cigarettes back and then destroy them because they are stale.
This way they ensure that their customers are buying fresh cigarettes.
Critics argue that this process costs the tobacco companies a lot of
money and that the state should change the law and be allowed
to destroy the cigarettes.
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MSA SC 5339-28-6
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1998/10/22
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
"Schaefer's Return to Life." The Washington Post,
22 October 1998.
The article says that the comptroller of Maryland "has an
unusual amount of power" because he is a member of the Board
of Public Works. [Compare and contrast this to comptrollers
in other states--is this really unusual?]
The Board of Public Works:
--awards state contracts
--buys land
--settles litigation
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MSA SC 5339-28-7
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1999/01/29
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
"Schaefer promises new ways." Montgomery Gazette, 29 January 1999.
The article lists the duties of the comptroller:
1) To act as chief tax collector
2) To serve as one of three members of the Board of Public Works
(The other two members are the governor and the state treasurer)
3) The comptroller can introduce bills into the General Assembly
but does not have the same amount of leverage as the governor to get
legislation passed.
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MSA SC 5339-28-8
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1999/01/27
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
Rascovar, Barry. "Schaefer takes the gloves off." The Baltimore Sun, 27 January 1999.
The article lists Schaefer's priorities as comptroller:
--investing pension funds in venture capital
--forming a business advisory panel for the comptroller's office
--forming a problem-resolution program for taxpayers
--orchestrating a state takeover the the management of the Baltimore Convention Center
--starting a program to invet in smaller communities
--targeting specific areas for economic growth initiatives
--inititating programs to spur regional development
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MSA SC 5339-28-9
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1852
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
submitted by Gail Parran from the Comptroller's Office
History of Revenues
- Creation of the Office of the Comptroller
- Lotteries a major revenue source - $55,358 (5.8% of Total Revenue)
- Primary Sources of Revenue include:
- Receipts from Internal Investments
- B&O Railroad
- Northern Central Railway
- Susquehanna Tide Water Canal Co.
- Traders' Licenses
- Licenses collected by Clerk of Circuit Court
- Marriage Licenses
- Direct Taxes 15% - Progressive tax on various kinds of property including iron mines, merchants' inventories, slaves, real estate and improvements.
- Special provisions allowed poor to deduct tax from their annual rent
- Stamps on specific items - Stamped paper, parchment of vellum
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MSA SC 5339-28-10
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1860
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Civil War Period
- Lotteries discontinued
- State begins providing primary education for all
- Creation of Bounty Tax
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MSA SC 5339-28-11
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1864
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Collateral Inheritance decreased to 1.5%
- New Constitution Adopted
- Increased power of the Board of Public Works
- Provided taxation for the support of Public Education
- Property owners paid 10 cents on each $100 of assessed property value
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MSA SC 5339-28-12
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1875
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Commission of Fisheries established
- Decline on Canals
- railroads were cheaper and faster
- Railroads nearly driven out of business due to "rate wars" of B&O, Pennsylvania, NY Central, and the Erie
- led to "The Great Strike" in Baltimore
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MSA SC 5339-28-13
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1880
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Growth of Big Business and factories in Baltimore
- Bounty Taxes Repealed
- Oysters a fruitful revenue source
- Revenue from Internal Investments decreasing significantly
- Collateral Inheritance increased to 2.5%
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MSA SC 5339-28-14
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1890
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Privatization of Canals and Railroads
- Elimination of Direct Taxes
- Primarily a tax on farmers and real estate
- Agricultural Depression
- Oyster Industry Declines
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MSA SC 5339-28-15
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1900
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Contact the Department of Special Collections for location.
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Description
From Comptroller's Office Intern Jamie Hersh
History of Revenues
- Increase Public Building Construction
- Equalization of distribution of school tax to black and white schools
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