Johns Hopkins University, the University of Maryland Medical Center and 13 other nonprofit organizations owning billions of dollars in Baltimore City property may have to pay taxes on their land for the first time if a newly proposed ballot measure makes it into law.
A handful of unions and advocacy groups are pushing for a Community Wealth Building Fund that could bring in as much as $120 million annually from universities and hospitals in the city limits.
That money would be stewarded by a commission appointed by the mayor and given to community building initiatives like worker-owned co-ops, urban farms and community-owned utilities.
“Part of this measure is about community wealth building, how do we also make sure that our anchor institutions, our ‘eds’ and meds are playing their part in being good neighbors and good employers,” said Lorianne Arikat, the senior policy analyst at 1199 United Healthcare Workers. “This campaign is really about wealth redistribution. And one way we want to fund this community wealth building fund is by looking at institutions that are currently property tax exempt.”
The proposal will need to get 10,000 signatures to make it on the ballot and then be approved by a majority of voters during the 2024 election.
Currently, the nonprofit organizations do not pay any property taxes, but do pay a total of $6 million a year into a fund for the city called the PILOT agreement. That agreement is set to expire in 2026.
"The University of Maryland Medical Center supports the existing PILOT agreement and we adhere to its provisions as we believe they are fair and equitable," said Tiffani Washington, a spokeswoman for UMMC. "We embrace our role as an anchor institution in West Baltimore and our investment in the health of the community goes far beyond the walls of our two hospitals. In fact, in 2022, we invested more than $264 million into community programs, research, education and charity care."
The 15-member commission that would oversee the funds taken in by the ballot measure would be made up of people in the community who are union employees of nonprofit organizations, people whose household incomes do not exceed 50% of the average household in the area and people who have experience in co-ops and community ownership.
“We talk about economic development, it must include our workers in the city because they're the backbone of how the city functions,” Arikat said.