ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WBFF) — Sonya Dunn is running for Maryland comptroller with a blunt argument against Democratic incumbent Brooke Lierman, claiming the state’s fiscal problems demand a more aggressive watchdog.
When asked by Spotlight on Maryland in her first television interview about the race and whether Lierman, who is seeking a second term, has failed during her first term, the Republican businesswoman from Bowie did not hesitate.
“Yes,” Dunn said.
Spotlight on Maryland interviews Sonya Dunn, a Republican challenger to incumbent Democrat Brooke Lierman. (Steve Pierce/Spotlight on Maryland)
Dunn sat down with Spotlight on Maryland to discuss her campaign and plans for the role. A separate interview with Lierman is scheduled for the end of August to discuss her reelection bid and record in office.
Dunn said she is making management and accountability central to her campaign, pointing to Maryland’s projected budget deficits, a credit-rating downgrade, problems taxpayers have had reaching the comptroller’s office, and longstanding questions about how the state tracks billions of dollars distributed through grants and contracts.
But some of the problems Dunn cites extend well beyond the comptroller’s authority. Maryland’s budget is largely shaped by the governor and General Assembly, while state agencies administer their own programs and grants.
The comptroller, however, is independently elected, oversees tax administration and serves on the powerful three-member Board of Public Works, giving the office a significant role in state finances and contracting. Lierman’s comptroller website says she tracks every dollar in and out of the state.
She claims to be the chief financial officer for the state of Maryland,” Dunn said. “Structural deficits, downgrading of the state credit rating. Also, you have these procurement issues and now your actual systems to be able to provide effective customer service.”
“Any other chief operating officer probably would have been dismissed by now,” Dunn added.
Dunn points to Maryland Tax Connect as a more direct test of management of the comptroller’s office.
Tax Connect has not connected. Bottom line,” Dunn said. “Customer service is abysmal.”
Maryland is in the final stage of replacing a decades-old tax-processing system with an expanded Maryland Tax Connect platform.
According to the comptroller’s office, individual taxpayers are scheduled to move onto the system Sept. 1. As part of that transition, the current online filing, payment and account-management functions will be unavailable between July 29 and Aug. 31 while data is transferred and tested.
Disclosure listed on the Maryland Comptroller’s website about Tax Connect. (Graphic: Zackary Lang/Spotlight on Maryland)
Lierman has described modernization as an effort to make interactions with taxpayers more secure and efficient.
Dunn said the system should remain accessible during the upgrade. She said that taxpayers should judge the project by whether they can get help when they need it.
“People are complaining about when they call, no one’s answering the phone,” Dunn said. “So pick up the phone.”
Dunn is also seizing on a transparency question Spotlight on Maryland has pursued for more than two years: How much taxpayer money does Maryland ultimately send to nonprofit organizations?
State agencies administer grants under varying programs and requirements, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore’s administration has pointed to efforts to standardize grant practices across government.
But neither the administration nor the comptroller’s office has provided Spotlight on Maryland with a single figure accounting for the total amount of state taxpayer money distributed to nonprofits.
Dunn argues that the fragmented system makes following taxpayer dollars unnecessarily difficult.
There needs to be a centralized, uniform grant management system,” she said. “Right now, we don’t have that.”
Asked whether she would make it one of her first priorities to audit, itemize, and release a full accounting of all state taxpayer funds donated to nonprofits, Dunn said the comptroller could produce a “transparency public performance report.”
If elected, one of Dunn’s most consequential platforms would be the Maryland Board of Public Works.
The comptroller serves on the three-member board with the governor and state treasurer. Among its responsibilities, the board reviews and approves a wide range of state contracts, expenditures and other financial matters.
Spotlight on Maryland interviews Sonya Dunn, a Republican challenger to incumbent Democrat Brooke Lierman. (Steve Pierce/Spotlight on Maryland)
Dunn said she would use the seat to repeatedly press state agencies about what taxpayers are getting for their money.
Are we spending the money correctly? Where is it going? How will it be used for Maryland? And are Maryland taxpayers actually receiving a return?” she said.
She is also calling for a broad overhaul of Maryland’s tax structure.
“What was done for Maryland in the late 1960s,” Dunn said, “is not working for Marylanders in the 21st century.”
She did not provide many details about which taxes she would seek to change or how such an overhaul would work. Changes to Maryland tax law would ultimately require action by the General Assembly and governor.
Before Dunn can test those ideas from the comptroller’s office, she faces a formidable political challenge.
Lierman is seeking a second term in a state where Democrats have dominated state elections for a generation. The incumbent comes from a prominent Maryland Democratic family.
Terry Lierman, the father of the comptroller and former chief of staff to Rep. Steny Hoyer, a St. Mary’s County Democrat, previously chaired the Maryland Democratic Party. The comptroller’s brothers, Trent and Kyle Lierman, are key figures at CASA and Civic Nation, respectively. Kyle serves as CEO of the nonprofit that runs prominent initiatives such as Michelle Obama’s When We All Vote.
Meanwhile, Dunn is married to Maj. Gen. Troy E. Dunn of the U.S. Air Force, who serves as the special assistant and senior military advisor with duties at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense, according to the Department of War’s website.
She said she is also the mother of four children, including one with autism, for whom she has devoted a significant amount of time to advocating for special-needs military families. Dunn said she believes her life experiences, including owning a small business, give her a unique perspective.
Dunn enters the general election with a substantial fundraising disadvantage. Recent Maryland State Board of Elections campaign finance reports show Dunn holding a little more than $400 in her campaign coffers, compared with Lierman’s more than $2 million.
“I am mounting a campaign for people to know that you can manage without having an abundant budget,” Dunn said. “It’s about showing that you have the ability to get the word out, share what needs to be done and making sure people understand there is a different choice.”
Do you have any tips or information related to this story? Send news tips to gmcollins@sbgtv.com or contact Spotlight on Maryland’s hotline at (410) 467-4670.
Follow Gary Collins on X and Instagram. Spotlight on Maryland is a collaboration between FOX45 News, WJLA in Washington, D.C., and The Baltimore Sun.
Local Story
