Conservative and libertarian policies:
Tax cuts = less government revenue, literally defunding the state.
Privatization = less revenue going to the government, more to the private market, and due to tax cuts, that money isn’t coming back to government.
Conclusion, the right wing are conducting anti-patriotic economic attacks on the state… Often doing so in a targeted way, funded by billionaire think tanks.
It’s a major issue that needs to be named, and discussed more openly.
Almost as if it is (has always been) class warfare.
We’re talking local here, not national.
Even if they started taxing the rich, there wouldn’t be many to tax in the area.
The median household income in Cumberland was $47,235 in 2021, which marked an an increase of 903(1.95%) from $46,332 in 2020. This income is 63.31% of the U.S. median household income of $74,606 (all incomes in 2022 inflation-adjusted dollars).
Top 5%: The mean household income for the wealthiest population (top 5%) is 302,286, which is 173.49% higher compared to the highest quintile, and 3113.14% higher compared to the lowest quintile.
https://www.neilsberg.com/insights/cumberland-md-median-household-income/#income-by-quintile
$300,000 is upper middle class, just barely enough to maybe call “rich”. Even so, it’s likely the only reason they live there is low taxes. We’re not talking national taxes here, this is local, and they can be absolutely sure if they locally tax those wealthier people any more than they are, they’ll move away.
They absolutely should do that, and give a firm middle finger to the back of the wealthy assholes as they move to their new mansion in whatever backwater they’re moving to next, but it doesn’t solve the inherent problem: the tax base is too small and too poor.
This is just a mountain town that has died slowly after the death of industry there post World War II, and frankly there is no good way to save it because there’s no way to convince anybody to take their industries up there. The state can subsidize it but it’s not going to grow.
What they’re doing here is trying to use the new changes in remote work to potentially trigger a revitalization and expand the tax base. Even then, they’re only giving it to 10 individuals, not anybody that moves there as the meme is implying. It may work, but I have my doubts.
They also doing anything about the conservative culture that likely caused their brain drain in the first place?
It’s actually much less conservative than the surrounding areas. Though admittedly it only takes a stone’s throw to get into some pretty gruesome backwoods. The real issue is that there aren’t any jobs in the area. It’s too out of the way for tourism, all the factories have closed down, and the railroad just isn’t what it used to be.
So functionally they hand you money, you can’t find a job that pays your bills, so you leave and they’ve gained nothing. Or is the subsidy ongoing as long as they’re short on people (haha until the end of time!) Or is there something else in place to help keep people there?
This is explicitly for full-time remote workers.
As part of a broader effort to recapture some of the city’s former vitality, Cumberland is hoping to take advantage of the pandemic shift to remote work by giving $20,000 to 10 home buyers who promise to invest in those properties and become part of the community.
[…]
It’s really to attract people who will benefit your community,” said Cumberland City Council member Laurie Marchini. “It’s not a social services program; it’s to bring people in who are employed.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/08/30/cumberland-maryland-revival/
I think they’re hoping to attract remote workers from the cities. It’s a historic town in a scenic area, so it has that going for it at least.
You can only get the subsidy if:
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You become a homeowner.
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You have a job or self-employment in the area.
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You stay there for 3 years. Or was it 5 years? Something like that.
In the area?
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At least it’s something different from the disappointing status quo of dying towns in America. Still sad. Pictures of the town make it look like it’s a charming little place. Hopefully things can turn around for it.
I’d like to hear more about the backwoods you refer to as greusome!
Lord. Stone’s throw from the city limits and you can hear dueling banjos. No grocery stores for miles, but multiple churches. Yards filled with scrap metal. Animals either roaming free or chained up inside a small area all day long. Casual usage of the n-bomb.
Sounds like every yard between Cumberland and Keyser, to me.
It was the lose of jobs as industry moved away, a trend started after WW2.
The culture probably helped but it’s a much larger trend than people simply not wanting to live in a conservative town.
How much are the taxes? $20,000.
$21,000 ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Why pay People when OBVIOUSLY they should be paying CORPORATIONS to SAY they will move in and then not! THAT’S FREEDOM! But THIS reeks of SOCIALISM!
Retirees. There are millions of workers in the DC/Baltimore area, looking for a cheaper place to retire. This is sort of in the area and much cheaper.
My ex-SIL frequently spoke about looking over the border into West Virginia as a place to buy cheap land for retirement, however her priority was access to breweries and being able to visit the city, but Cumberland is awfully far out for that
No, it’s to attract people with jobs. Explicitly.
I’m not sure why there’s all this guessing and pontificating going on in here, you can just look the story up.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/08/30/cumberland-maryland-revival/
Thanks for finding the link and posting it.
I see they do want employed people, but I still say investing community fiber would be a better draw for people who can work from home
I can’t get over how I’m learning about small town economic policies via a meme. Thanks for spreading awareness!
This Washington Post article talks about the policy and how other small cities are trying the same thing https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/08/30/cumberland-maryland-revival/
This is a new thing that smaller towns are trying to do to take advantage of an increase in remote work.
The meme is also misleading because it’s implying that this is something they’re giving to everyone that moves there for a limited time, when it is only 10 people. It’s also implying that there’s not enough people there to pay taxes, which doesn’t actually make sense because that’s not how taxes work. There would definitely be enough tax income if they didn’t care about the future of the town. What they’re trying to do is revitalize the area and trigger growth, and they need more income to fund that revitalization.
I fucking miss MD…taxes are no worse than other places. Plus Deep Creek lake and Accident MD!
I’m a school bus driver (in PA) and one of my colleagues is leaving to live and work in rural MD. The coolest thing about the gig there is that you get to take your school bus home at the end of your run, which generally picks up and drops off kids from the area you live in. In fact you have to take your bus home since they don’t have parking spaces for them at the schools.
The uncool part is that the pay is shit with no benefits, but at least that keeps you in line with all the other residents.
To be fair free transportation isn’t a bad benefit.
I’ll stick with my health insurance, thanks.
Ah, I forgot you guys need that shit.
Maryland is also crazy beautiful. Had to take a detour on the way to DC because traffic. Ended up on local, winding roads and drove past beautiful creeks with ancient oaks and old houses. It’s the only time I’ve thought, “damn this is a really awesome suburb”. And going out on the Chesapeake was a great birthday, it lives up to the hype.
How much is twenty thousand dollar dollars in USD?
At least 20
I grew up in a village called Cumberland that is growing in slow, moderated steps…
Edit: Commented in the wrong place.
