The Gist
County Commissioner, Washington County

Taj Smith

Candidate for County Commissioner, Washington County

Unaffiliated

Background

Occupation
Human services worker
Campaign website
washco4tajsmith.com

Works in the human services field; unaffiliated candidate endorsed by the Washington County Teachers' Association.

Report

Documented positions

Education

  • Proposes moving school resource officer costs into the county budget.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “I'll shift public safety costs for School Resource Officers into the county budget, freeing up funds for competitive teacher pay”
    Report
  • Proposes a school facilities fund from commercial real estate fees.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “I will propose a dedicated fund from commercial real estate fees over $500k.”
    Report

Economy & jobs

  • Proposes tying county tax breaks to $30-an-hour wages.

    With claw-back provisions if goals are missed.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “I'll tie county tax breaks to a $30/hour wage benchmark with claw back provisions for missed goals”
    Report
  • Proposes shifting economic strategy away from warehouse expansion.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “I will propose shifting economic strategy away from warehouse expansion toward high-value growth.”
    Report

Roads & infrastructure

  • Proposes making commercial developers pay for their water impact.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “we should update fees so that commercial developers cover the cost of their water impact, mandate closed loop recycling for high user industries”
    Report

Government & transparency

  • Pledges to reinstate public comment and hold evening town halls.

    VOTE411 Voter Guide: Washington County Commissioner

    Candidate questionnaire · League of Women Voters of Maryland Education Fund (VOTE411) · onyourballot.vote411.org

    “I will reinstate open public comment during meetings. … host rotating evening town halls across all municipalities”
    Report

Other issues in this race

Other candidates in this race addressed these topics. We found no documented position from Taj Smith on them.

  • Taxes & budgetNo documented position found.
  • Public safetyNo documented position found.
  • HousingNo documented position found.
  • Environment & parksNo documented position found.
  • Health & human servicesNo documented position found.

All sources (3)

Positions are summarized from the sources listed and are not inferred from party affiliation. Items marked “Provided by” were published by the candidate's verified campaign or party office under our campaign content standards. See something wrong? Use the Report link beside it, or contact us.