Maryland Governor Wes Moore says he doesn’t see the need to raise taxes during this year’s General Assembly session. But his fellow Democrats in the House of Delegates are beginning to examine potential tax hikes that may not get any votes until next year.

The $63-billion budget that Governor Moore sent lawmakers for the upcoming fiscal year — which the Senate is expected to take up this week — did not include any tax hikes. But storm clouds loom for future years, made only worse by a revenue downgrade last week by the Maryland Board of Revenue Estimates of more than $250-million in the next two fiscal years.

With a lot of ambitious projects on the Governor’s radar, particularly in transportation like the Red Line in Baltimore, his fellow Democrats in the House have started talking tax hikes now. A hearing was held this week on a bill that would expand the products and services the state sales tax would be applied to, but appearing on WYPR’s Midday Tuesday, Governor Moore didn’t sound ready to go that route this year. “Taxes, particularly ones that are going to hit working families, as I look at the data I don’t see a need for us to raise taxes in this moment,” Moore told host Tom Hall. Senate President Bill Ferguson has echoed similar sentiments, so for now, it appears tax hikes will be a 2025 conversation in Annapolis.

Fee hikes are a different story, as a handful of bills have passed one chamber ahead of the important Crossover Day on March 18th. One would allow the state Department of the Environment to charge well installation and septic cleanup fees while also raising charges under the Wetlands and Waterways Program; another hikes boat title, manufacturer, and dealer fees; increased costs of licenses for certain hunting and fishing licenses for out-of-state residents were also approved by both chambers. Governor Moore defended many of these hikes during his Midday appearance, saying many have not been raised in more than a decade.