But referring to the 2012 legislation in question as a tax on rain is misleading. The Post wrote in an editorial that the "rain tax" is "a good applause line" but "a tougher sell on the merits":

The "rain tax" is, in fact, a federally mandated levy on pollution caused by storm water run-off, one of the main culprits in the tragic, decades-long environmental degradation of the Chesapeake Bay. Established by state legislation passed in 2012, the tax applies to the state's 10 most heavily populated urban and suburban jurisdictions, places with an abundance of hard surfaces -- parking lots, roads, driveways. In those built-up places, storm water carrying sediment, nutrients, trash and a variety of other pollutants washes into nearby streams and rivers, which drain into the bay. Revenues from the tax are meant to help localities adopt programs and build infrastructure to limit the damage from that runoff in order to protect the body of water.

The Baltimore Sun wrote in a June 2014 editorial that "rain tax" claims are "nonsense" since "Maryland does not tax the rain. It has directed its 10 most populous jurisdictions to raise revenue to pay for stormwater management upgrades that will prevent pollution from choking the Chesapeake Bay, per federal environmental regulations." Washington Post reporter Jenna Johnson wrote in a fact check article that "it's more of a pollution tax than a rain tax."

The nonprofit Chesapeake Bay Foundation called the "rain tax" moniker "blatantly false," stating: "The truth is that we are talking about a fee to reduce pollution from water that washes off hard surfaces and empties into local waterways. Runoff pollution is real--it is responsible for no-swimming advisories and beach closures in local waters, fish consumption advisories, and dead zones in the Bay that can't support aquatic life. It also causes localized flooding and property damage. And in many areas, it is the largest source of pollution."

The misleading "rain tax" talking point has repeatedly been used by Maryland Republicans, especially during Larry Hogan's successful run for Maryland governor. In May, Hogan signed SB 863, the "Rain Tax Mandate Repeal (Watershed Protection and Restoration Programs, Revision), which repeals the requirement that forces local jurisdictions to collect a stormwater remediation fee, and instead authorizes such jurisdictions to do so." The Sun reported that "environmentalists worked to get the proposal from an outright repeal of stormwater fees to the version that passed."