In case you missed it yesterday (as I did), let me highlight Phil McGowan's story about a plan to greatly increase the impact fees on new homes in Anne Arundel County. County Executive John R. Leopold is expected to propose the change -- "perhaps tripling or quadrupling them" -- next month:

Leopold said the current fees on single-family homes ($4,904), townhouses ($3,385) and most condominiums ($2,492) "do not capture the full freight of the cost developers should pay" to offset the impact that projects place on roads, schools and other county services.

A report prepared for the county in September shows that the impact of a single-family home on roads and schools is $21,056; for a townhouse, $17,279; and most condominiums, $12,135. The administration's bill is also expected to factor in impacts on police and fire services.

Homebuilders worry a big increase would mean fewer sales.

Hanley Wood Market Intelligence expects that new home sales in Anne Arundel this year will be up 12 percent from last year -- a much better performance than the national average -- but down nearly 40 percent from the annual average during the boom, McGowan reports.

In a further indication of the languishing housing market, about 4,000 existing homes are listed for sale in the county -- quadruple the number this time last year, Anne Arundel budget director John Hammond said in a budget briefing last week to state lawmakers.