The Montgomery County Council will meet on Tuesday, May 12 at 10:45 a.m. and the meeting will begin with two proclamation presentations. The first, presented by the Public Safety (PS) Committee, will recognize Public Safety Appreciation Week. The second, presented by Councilmember Will Jawando, will recognize National Day of Prayer. At 11:30 a.m., the Council will hold a commemoration celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. At 1:15 p.m., Council President Natali Fani-González and Councilmembers Sidney Katz and Kate Stewart will present a proclamation recognizing Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Awareness Month.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Introduction: Lead sponsor Councilmember Dawn Luedtke will introduce Expedited Bill 23-26, Weapons – Restrictions on Ghost Guns Near Minors and Carrying of Firearms in or Near Places of Public Assembly. Bill 23-26 would define terms related to weapons and firearms, regulate the sale or transfer of ghost guns with respect to minors, amend exceptions to a prohibition against carrying firearms in places of public assembly and amend the regulation of the operation of gun shops. The purpose of Expedited Bill 23-26 is to bring the County law into alignment with the Maryland Supreme Court’s opinion in Engage Armament so that the County law is valid and enforceable under Maryland law.
In 2021 and 2022, the Council enacted Bills 4-21 and 21-22E, which sought to regulate “ghost guns” and other firearms within 100 yards of places of public assembly and with respect to minors. The Maryland Supreme Court issued an opinion in Engage Armament, which upheld portions of Council Bills 4-21 and 21-22E, but found that other provisions of the bills exceed County authority or are preempted by state law.
Councilmember Stewart is a cosponsor of Expedited Bill 23-26. A public hearing is scheduled for June 9.
Expedited Bill 24-26, Buildings – Building Permits – Data Center Moratorium
Introduction: Lead sponsor Councilmember Jawando will introduce Expedited Bill 24-26, Buildings – Building Permits – Data Center Moratorium. The legislation would define a data center and prohibit the Department of Permitting Services (DPS) from issuing a building permit for a data center. This prohibition would sunset two years after the effective date.
A public hearing is scheduled for June 16.
Each item on the Council’s Consent Calendar can be found on the Council agenda for Tuesday, May 12, which is available on the Council website.
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.
Public hearing and vote expected: The Council will hold a public hearing and is expected to vote on a $500,000 supplemental appropriation to provide additional funds to the Nonprofit Security Grant Program. The appropriation will be used toward additional security measures throughout the community to combat hate crimes.
Public hearing and vote expected: The Council will hold a public hearing and is expected to vote on a supplemental appropriation for a state grant award to expand the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Healthy, Efficient, Electrified, Climate-Adapted Pilot (HEECAP) Homes Grants Program. DEP’s HEECAP Program is intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, provide gap funding for health and safety repairs, and offer climate adaptations for low and moderate-income homes in Montgomery County. DEP awards HEECAP funds to community organizations who partner with eligible homeowners to implement these improvements.
Public hearing and vote expected: The Council will hold a public hearing and is expected to vote on a resolution to approve an $8.5 million supplemental appropriation for the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) fund balance to offset the operational disruptions due to the 2026 generational winter weather event that took place in Maryland. As a result of the weather event, MCPS incurred expenses that exceeded the amounts budgeted and historically projected for winter weather events in Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 and prior fiscal years. The source of funds is a federal grant.
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Public hearing and vote expected: The Council will hold a public hearing and is expected to vote on an amendment to the FY25-30 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) and supplemental appropriation to the FY26 capital budget in the amount of $481,000 for the Department of Correction and Rehabilitation (DOCR). The funds are for ligature-resistant shelving improvements in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility. The increase is needed to remove 512 existing shelves and replace them with newly designed and safer ligature-resistant shelves.
Public hearing: The Council will hold a public hearing on a supplemental appropriation to the FY26 Operating Budget of the Montgomery County Police Department in the amount of $994,000 to support the relocation of 4th District police staff to the Wheaton Office Building. The relocation and build-out would address the safety, operation and facility limitations, and space constraints present at the current location. A Public Safety Committee worksession will be held on June 8.
Public hearing: The Council will hold a public hearing on amendments to the FY27 Capital Budget and the FY27-32 CIP which would create a new standalone project for the Glen Echo Spanish Ballroom renovation. The project is supported by funds previously appropriated in the Cost Sharing: MCG project in addition to $1.5 million awarded by the state in FY27. State funding and previously appropriated County funding will be used as a match for the National Park Service’s Centennial Match Program to restore this historic facility. The funds will support essential capital upgrades, including the installation of a new HVAC system.
Resolution to Set the County Income Tax Rates
Public hearing: The Council will hold a public hearing on the County Executive’s proposal to increase the County income tax rate from 3.2 to 3.3 percent of an individual’s Maryland taxable income for the taxable year beginning after Dec. 31, 2026, and subsequent years. Montgomery County’s income tax rate was set at 3.2 percent for the FY04 Operating Budget, the maximum rate allowed for that fiscal year. The Council does not annually approve an income tax rate, like it does for the property tax rates. The current rate remains in effect until the Council adopts a new resolution to change the rate.
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.
Read the original article at mccouncil