Montgomery County Council Meets on Feb. 25 to Vote on a Resolution to Approve Regulations for Building Energy Performance Standards
For Immediate Release: Monday, February 24, 2025
Also on Feb. 25: Briefing on the Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment
The Montgomery County Council will meet on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at 9 a.m., and the meeting will begin with two proclamation presentations. The first, presented by Councilmember Andrew Friedson, will recognize the 10th Anniversary of the Maryland Black Chamber of Commerce. The second, presented by the Council’s Transportation and Environment (TE) Committee, will recognize Road Safety Month. The members of the TE Committee include Chair Evan Glass, Councilmember Marilyn Balcombe and Council President Kate Stewart. An additional proclamation at 1:15 p.m. , presented by Councilmember Laurie-Anne Sayles and Council Vice President Will Jawando, will recognize the Montgomery County Chapter of the National Pan-Hellenic Council.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Interview: The Council will conduct an interview with Karen Randolph, who is the County Executive’s Nominee for Chief Operating Officer with the Department of Technology and Enterprise Business Solutions (TEBS). The department provides technology solutions and services to facilitate the delivery of a wide range of services in all branches of Montgomery County government.
Vote expected: The Council is expected to vote on a resolution to approve Executive Regulation 17-23AM, Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS). The regulation would set numerical site Energy Use Intensity (EUI) performance standards for building groups, define how renewable energy will be incorporated into performance metrics and define the elements required in Building Performance Improvement Plans (BPIPs).
The Transportation and Environment (TE) committee held seven discussions on Executive Regulation 17-23 over the past year. Following committee review, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) developed modifications to the regulation based on the feedback received and additional benchmarking information.
The regulation is required by Bill 16-21 , which expanded the number of buildings covered by existing benchmarking requirements, created a Building Performance Improvement Board and required energy performance standards to be established by regulation for covered buildings with a gross floor area of 25,000 gross square feet or greater.
The Transportation and Environment (TE) Committee recommends approval. The Council held a worksession on these regulations on Feb. 11, 2025.
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District Council Session
Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 25-04, Overlay Zones – Bethesda (B) Overlay Zone
Introduction: The Council is expected to introduce Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 25-04, Overlay Zones – Bethesda (B) Overlay Zone, which would amend the Bethesda Overlay Zone, implementing recommendations found in the Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment .
The ZTA, as requested by the Planning Board, includes changes to incentivize both family-size and deeply affordable moderately-priced dwelling units by providing benefits such as additional building height, reduced park impact payments and additional public benefit points. The ZTA also encourages a new recreation center by allowing additional building height, a reduction of required public open space and public benefit points. In addition, the changes lift the existing development cap for properties within the Bethesda Overlay Zone.
The ZTA also makes minor changes to public benefits associated with energy codes, removes conditions of approval requiring applications to file for a building permit within two years of site plan approval, expands the height incentive area, adjusts the rate and payment for the park impact payments, and clarifies that Bethesda Overlay Zone (BOZ) density is eligible once an application has maximized all its commercial or residential zoning.
A public hearing is scheduled for April 1.
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Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment
Briefing: The Council will receive a briefing on the Planning Board draft of the Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment. The plan recommends technical updates to the 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan to improve implementation of recommendations related to new parks, transportation infrastructure, a new recreation center and affordable housing within a plan area of roughly 450 acres.
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A minor master plan amendment, like the Bethesda Downtown Plan Minor Master Plan Amendment, revisits a specific portion of the approved and adopted master plan and reexamines certain elements, often to address a change that was not anticipated at the time the adopted master plan was approved. This minor master plan is focused on the implementation of the 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan and doesn’t reopen the entire plan. Existing zoning, parks, transportation and other recommendations remain unchanged.
Minor master plans follow the same process as master and sector plans, with community outreach, review and recommendation by the Planning Board, a public hearing, and review by the County Council prior to adoption. This minor master plan amendment would update the 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan and covers the same plan area as the 2017 plan.
More information can be found on the Planning Board resource page . A public hearing on the Bethesda Minor Master Plan Amendment is scheduled for Feb. 26.
Consent Calendar
Each item on the Council’s Consent Calendar can be found on the Council agenda for Tuesday, Feb. 25, which is available on the Council website .
Public Hearings
Unless otherwise noted, the Council will hold the following hybrid public hearings at 1:30 p.m. Residents can visit the Council website to learn about the multiple ways to provide testimony .
The Council’s public hearing on Bill 28-24 , Employees’ Retirement System and Other Post Employment Benefits – Administration – Powers and Duties, originally scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, at 1:30 p.m. has been canceled. The public hearing will be rescheduled on a later date.
Interview: The Council will conduct an interview with Barbara Fredricks and Era Pandya, who are candidates for the Council’s representative on the Merit System Protection Board. The Board oversees the Merit System and protects employee and applicant rights guaranteed under the County Merit System. The Board processes grievance and disciplinary appeals by issuing written decisions following a review of written records or after conducting appropriate hearings.
The Council meeting schedule may change from time to time. View the current Council and Committee agendas, Council staff reports and additional information on items scheduled for Council review on the Council website .
Council and committee meetings are streamed live on the Council’s web page via YouTube and on Facebook Live and can be watched on County Cable Montgomery on Xfinity/RCN 6 HD 996/1056, Fios 30, and on the CCM live stream .
Release ID: 25-056
Media Contact: Sonya Healy 240-777-7926, Benjamin Sky Brandt 240-777-7884
For updates and link to press release, see here: http://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Press_Detail.aspx?Item_ID=46601