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Three Montgomery County Council Committees Hold Virtual Meetings on Oct. 28 Starting at 9:30 a.m.
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, October 27, 2021
Committees will receive updates from the Merit System Protection Board, the Ethics Commission, the Office of Procurement and Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority; review legislation on building energy use standards and property tax revenue from solar collection systems; and review transportation fares based on a fare equity study and the development of a crowd sourcing system for Ride On
The Government Operations and Fiscal Policy (GO) will meet on Thursday, Oct. 28 at 9:30 a.m. to receive updates from the Merit System Protection Board, the Ethics Commission and the Office of Procurement.
The members of the GO Committee include Chair Nancy Navarro and Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Sidney Katz.
The Transportation and Environment (T&E) Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. to review Bill 16-21, Environmental - Building Energy Use Benchmarking and Performance Standards – Amendments, a resolution to amend FY22 Transportation Fees, Charges, and Fares based on a fare equity study, a supplemental appropriation to develop a crowd sourcing system for Ride On and receive a briefing from WMATA on the blue, orange and silver lines capacity study
The members of the T&E Committee include Chair and Council President Tom Hucker and Councilmembers Evan Glass and Hans Riemer.
The joint GO and Planning, Housing and Economic Development (PHED) Committee will meet at 2 p.m. to review Bill 5-21, Agricultural Land Preservation - Solar Collection System - Dedication of Business Personal Property Tax Revenue.
The members of the PHED Committee include Chair Hans Riemer and Councilmembers Andrew Friedson (Lead for Parks) and Will Jawando.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Briefing: The GO Committee will receive an update on the Merit System Protection Board (MSPB). Representatives from MSPB will provide the Committee with updates on key programs and initiatives and review any relevant spending or performance data.
MSPB oversees the County’s merit system and protects County government employee and job applicant rights guaranteed under the merit system law. MSPB is composed of three members who are appointed by the County Council.
MSPB hears and adjudicates matters related to the removal, demotion or suspension of merit system employees and grievance appeals. The Board is also tasked with conducting studies and audits of the administration of the merit and retirement pay systems, as well as the County’s compensation and classification plans, on a periodic basis to report findings and recommendations to the County Executive and the Council.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Bruce Martin, executive director, MSPB; Harriet E. Davidson, Chair, MSPB; Phil Weeda, fiscal and policy analyst, Office of Management and Budget (OMB); and Kathleen Hynes, administrative services coordinator, OMB.
Briefing: The GO Committee will receive an update on the Ethics Commission. Representatives from Commission will provide the Committee with updates on key programs and initiatives and review any relevant spending or performance data. The discussion will include an overview of
The Ethics Commission promotes the public’s trust in County government through the independent administration and enforcement of laws designed to ensure the impartiality of County employees, including elected officials, in the execution of their duties and responsibilities. The Commission primarily does this through the administration of financial disclosure, lobbying disclosure, and outside employment approval. The Commission also engages in other activities such as conducting ethics trainings for County employees, as well as providing guidance and recommendations regarding the County’s public ethics laws.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Robert Cobb, chief counsel and staff director, Ethics Commission; Bruce Romer, vice chair, Ethics Commission; Mary Ann Keefee, commissioner, Ethics Commission; and Julie Knight, fiscal and policy analyst, Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Briefing: The GO Committee will receive an update on the Office of Procurement (PRO). Representatives from PRO will provide the Committee with updates on key programs and initiatives and review any relevant spending or performance data. The discussion will include an FY22 budget overview, accomplishments since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and recent initiatives including the center-led procurement initiative and the Minority, Female and Disabled-Owned Businesses (MFD) Program.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Avinash Shetty, director of procurement; Pam Jones, division chief, Procurement; Grace Denno, division chief, Business Relations and Compliance; and Derrick Harrigan, Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Bill 16-21, Environmental Sustainability – Building Energy Performance Standards
Review: The T&E Committee will review Bill 16-21 Environmental Sustainability - Building Energy Use Benchmarking and Performance Standards – Amendments, which would modify the County’s current environmental benchmarking law to include additional County-owned, commercial and multifamily buildings to meet the long-term energy performance standards.
The legislation would create a 15-voting member Building Performance Improvement Board that will advise the Department of Environmental Protection on the implementation of building energy performance standards and establish a Building Performance Improvement Plan (BPIP) process for properties that cannot reasonably meet performance standards. The bill also requires reports to the County Executive and Council on building energy performance for covered buildings.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Adam Ortiz, director, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP); Stan Edwards, chief of energy, Climate, and Compliance Division, DEP; Lindsey Shaw, manager of energy and sustainability programs, DEP; and Emily Curley, commercial energy program manager, DEP
Resolution to amend FY22 Transportation Fees, Charges, and Fares based on Fare Equity Study
Review: The T&E Committee will review a resolution to amend FY22 transportation fees, charges and fares based on a fare equity study conducted by the Department of Transportation for Ride On. Based on information from the study, the County Executive is recommending reducing the basic Ride On fare from $2 to $1. Express routes that charged $4.25 before the fare holiday would also have their fares reduced to $1. The monthly pass cost would be reduced from $45 to $22.50.
The new fare structure would not go into effect until Jan. 2, 2022, when the fare holiday that was unanimously passed by the Council is set to expire.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Christopher Conklin, director, Department of Transportation (DOT); Hannah Henn, deputy director for transportation policy, DOT; Dan Hibbert, chief, Division of Transit Services (DTS), DOT; Phil McLaughlin, chief, Planning and Implementation, DOT/DTS; Deanna Archey, senior planning specialist, DOT/DTS; Brady Goldsmith, chief, Management Services, DOT; Gary Nalven, Office of Management and Budget (OMB); and Nicholas Hart, associate, IBI Group.
Supplemental appropriation to develop a crowd-sourcing system for Ride-On, $720,300
Review: The T&E Committee will review a $720,300 supplemental appropriation which would fund a contractor to develop Ride On crowd sourcing system software and a smartphone mobile application. The crowd sourcing software would be deployed to a subset of transit routes and would receive passenger loading information from automatic passenger counters.
The lead sponsor is Council President Hucker, at the request of the County Executive.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Christopher Conklin, director, Department of Transportation (DOT); Dan Hibbert, chief, Division of Transit Services (DTS), DOT; Brady Goldsmith, chief, Management Services, DOT; and Gary Nalven, Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
WMATA briefing on the Blue/Orange/Silver Lines Capacity Study
Briefing: The T&E Committee will receive a briefing from representatives of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) on the blue, orange and silver lines capacity study. Prior to the pandemic, the ability to increase east-west Metrorail service through the region has been limited by a lack of capacity from where the blue, orange and silver lines converge in Rosslyn east through the District of Columbia. In 2019 WMATA undertook a study to examine options to increase capacity and the discussion will include a review of five possible alternative solutions. A locally preferred alternative will be selected sometime in 2022.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Shyam Kannan, vice president of planning, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA); Mark Phillips, planning program manager, WMATA; Charles Scott, senior government relations officer for Maryland, WMATA.
Review: The joint GO and PHED Committee will review Bill 5-21, which would dedicate business personal property tax revenue received for a solar collection system constructed in the Agricultural Reserve Zone. The revenue would be dedicated to the Agricultural Land Preservation Fund which is an existing special, non-lapsing revolving fund that is used to purchase property interests, such as an agricultural easement, to preserve agricultural land in the County. The goal of this legislation is to increase overall funding for the Agricultural Land Preservation Fund.
The lead sponsor is Councilmember Friedson. Councilmembers Rice and Katz are cosponsors.
Those expected to attend and provide information from the Office of Agriculture include Jeremy Criss, director of agricultural services and Mike Sheffel, agricultural preservation program administrator.
The Committee meeting schedule may change from time to time. The current Council and Committee agendas, Council staff reports and additional information on items scheduled for Council review can be viewed at: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/ondemand/index.html.
The Council and committees are meeting via Zoom this fall because of ongoing construction and technology upgrades in the Council's Hearing Room and the inability to conduct meetings in a socially distant way in other areas of the Council Office Building with television broadcast capacity. Councilmembers will continue to hold meetings in their offices by appointment.
The virtual Council and committee meetings will be 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: 21-430Media Contact: Sonya Healy 240-777-7926, Benjamin Sky Brandt 240-777-7884