For Immediate Release: Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Council to hold a public hearing on the Planning Board Draft of the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan; Committees will review legislation to provide healthier meal options for children, affordable housing for individuals with low incomes, property tax credits for public safety officers and review the transportation and health and human services portions of FY23-28 Capital Improvement Projects
The Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee will meet on Thursday Feb. 17 at 9:30 a.m. to review Bill 1-22, Eating and Drinking Establishments - Healthy Meals for Children and the Capital Improvements Program (CIP) for the Department of Health and Human Services.
The members of the HHS Committee include Chair and Council President Gabe Albornoz, Council Vice President Evan Glass (Lead for Homelessness and Vulnerable Communities) and Councilmember Craig Rice.
The Government Operation and Fiscal Policy (GO) Committee will meet on Feb. 17 at 9:30 a.m. to review the Connect Montgomery Alliance strategic plan.
The members of the GO Committee include Chair Nancy Navarro and Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Sidney Katz.
The joint Public Safety (PS) and GO Committee will meet on Feb. 17 at 1:30 p.m. to review Bill 39-21, Taxation - Public Safety Officers - Emergency Communication Specialists - Property Tax Credit – Established and the CIP for the Dickerson Radio Tower.
The members of the PS Committee include Chair Sidney Katz, Council President Gabe Albornoz and Councilmember Tom Hucker.
The Council will meet on Feb. 17 at 7:30 p.m. to hold an evening public hearing on the on the Planning Board Draft of the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan. Residents can sign up to testify live here or upload prerecorded testimony here.
The Transportation and Environment (T&E) Committee will meet on Friday, Feb. 18 at 10:30 a.m. to review Executive Regulation 18-21, Water Quality Protection Charge, Definition of Treatment and the Capital Improvements Program (CIP) for transportation.
The members of the T&E Committee include Chair Tom Hucker, Council Vice President Evan Glass and Councilmember Hans Riemer.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Bill 1-22, Eating and Drinking Establishments - Healthy Meals for Children
Review: The HHS Committee will review Bill 1-22 - Eating and Drinking Establishments - Healthy Meals for Children, which would require children’s meals offered by food service facilities to include certain healthy food and beverage options. The lead sponsor is Councilmember Rice. Council President Albornoz and Councilmembers Jawando, Navarro and Hucker are cosponsors.
Child obesity rates continue to rise with long-term health and quality of life consequences. The trend is concerning especially during the pandemic because obese children are at a greater risk of severe illness from a COVID-19 infection. Sugar-sweetened beverages or sugary drinks are leading sources of added sugars in the American diet and are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity and other chronic diseases.
Clark R. Beil, senior administrator, Licensure and Regulatory Services, Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will attend and provide information.
Review: The HHS Committee will review and make recommendation to the Council on a $100,000 supplemental appropriation in federal funds for the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of General Services and Department of Housing and Community Affairs to explore how the acquisition and renovation of an existing building could help meet the County’s Affordable housing need for individuals with very low incomes.
The Montgomery County Housing Needs Assessment estimated that in 2018, there was a shortage of 23,030 units affordable to households earning up to 30 percent area median income. These residents are at risk of entering the homeless system and may have difficulty exiting homelessness because of the lack of affordable housing.
The lead sponsor is the Council President at the request of the County Executive.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Amanda Harris, chief, Service to End and Prevent Homelessness, DHHS; Lindsay Lucas, Office of Management and Budget (OMB); and Greg Ossont, deputy director, Department of General Services.
FY23-28 CIP and FY23 Capital Budget, Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
Review: The HHS Committee will review the DHHS portion of the FY23-28 CIP. The meeting will include an overview of affordable living quarters, emergency homeless shelters and restoration center projects. At a previous meeting held on Feb. 10, the committee met to discuss education-related projects.
For FY23-28, the County Executive recommends a total of $62.6 million for DHHS, which is a $15.4 million or 32.5 percent increase from the Amended FY21-26 program. The increase is need for childcare renovations, funding for construction of Linkages to Learning and School Based Health Centers, funding for the design and construction of a restoration center, and the planning and design of a facility that would provide affordable living quarters to support those that are experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Raymond Crowel, director, DHHS; Victoria Buckland, chief operating officer, DHHS; Amanda Harris, chief, Special Needs Housing, DHHS; Rolando Santiago, chief, Behavioral Health and Crisis Services; Lindsay Lucas, OMB; David Dise, director, Department of General Services (DGS); Greg Ossont, deputy director, DGS; and Athena Morrow, DHHS.
Connect Montgomery Alliance Strategic Plan
Review: The GO Committee will meet to review the Strategic Plan of the Connect Montgomery Alliance (CMA), a group of organizations that collectively implements portions of the annual Cable Plan. CMA is composed of representatives from County Cable Montgomery, the County Council, the Office of Broadband Programs (OBP), Montgomery College, Montgomery Community Media, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery Municipal Cable and the City of Rockville.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Barry Hudson, Public Information Officer and Chair, CMA; Joe Webster, chief broadband officer, Technology Enterprise Business Services (TEBS); and Julie Knight, Fiscal and Policy Analyst, OMB.
Review: The joint PS and GO Committee will review Bill 39-21, Taxation – Public Safety Officers – Public Safety Emergency Communications Specialists – Property Tax Credit, which would provide a property tax credit for public safety officers and public safety emergency communications specialists employed by the County.
The purpose of the bill is to increase the number of County employees occupying public safety positions who reside in the County and help recruit and retain public safety employees. If approved, Bill 39-21 would establish a maximum $2,500 County property tax credit for full-time sworn police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians and public safety emergency communications specialists employed by the County.
The lead sponsors are Councilmembers Hucker and Council President Albornoz. Council Vice President Glass and Councilmembers Navarro, Katz, Friedson, Jawando, and Rice are cosponsors.
Those expected to attend include Michael Coveyou, director, Department of Finance; Lee Holland, president, Fraternal Order of Police (FOP); and Eric Bernard, Montgomery County Volunteer Fire and Rescue Association (MCVFRA).
Review: The joint PS and GO Committee will review and vote on a an amendment to the FY21-26 CIP to build a 450-foot communications tower near the Public Safety Radio System equipment shelter in the Dickerson area. This amendment is needed because the Public Safety Radio System communication equipment is located on the GenOn power plant’s smokestack, which is in the process of being shut down and is tentatively scheduled to be removed.
The County has four antennas and two microwave dishes located at the 420-foot mark that provide the coverage needed in this portion of the County including the Potomac River. The recommended amendment is consistent with the criteria for amending the CIP to address the public safety concern that would arise without a new tower. This amendment will create an unfunded new project. A subsequent executive transfer of $1.9 million in General Obligation bonds and $100,000 in current revenue will provide the needed project funding.
The lead sponsor is the Council President at the request of the County Executive.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Mike Knuppel, program director, PS Projects and Public Safety System Modernization (PSSM), Technology and Enterprise Business Solutions (TEBS); Gerry Adcock, manager, Radio Communications Services, TEBS; Thomas Williamson, real estate specialist, Department of General Services (DGS); Alison Dollar, chief budget officer, TEBS; Julie Knight, OMB.
Planning Board Draft of the Silver Spring and Adjacent Communities Plan
Public hearing: The Council will hold an evening public hearing on the on the Planning Board Draft of the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan. The plan makes recommendations within the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan area for land use and zoning, housing, economic development, urban design, transportation, parks and public spaces, environmental resiliency, community facilities and historic resources.
The Planning, Housing and Economic Development (PHED) Committee is tentatively scheduled to review the plan on March 7, 2022.
Executive Regulation 18-21: Water Quality Protection Charge, Definition of Treatment
Review: The T&E Committee will review Executive Regulation 18-21 – Water Quality Protection Charge, Definition of Treatment, which clarifies the terms treatment and treat, as they are currently utilized by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in determining the eligibility of properties for Water Quality Protection Charge credits.
A Water Quality Protection Charge credit process was established in 2013 with Bill 34-12. Credits are available for properties which contain a stormwater management system maintained exclusively by the property owner. If environmental site design (ESD) methods are used to the maximum extent practicable, then the maximum credit is 80 percent of the charge. Otherwise, properties can get credits of up to 60 percent of their Water Quality Protection Charge for stormwater treated on-site.
A property which does not have a stormwater management system is also eligible for credits if that property drains to a stormwater management system on another property under the same ownership. Non-residential and multi-family properties with stormwater management systems which treat stormwater from other properties are eligible to receive a credit of up to 100 percent of their Water Quality Protection Charge.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Patty Bubar, deputy director, Department of Environmental Protection (DEP); Frank Dawson, Chief, Watershed Restoration Division, DEP; Vicky Wan, chief, Strategic Services Division, DEP; Jim Ogorzalek, Office of the County Attorney; Rich Harris, Fiscal and Policy Analyst, Office of Management and Budget
Review: The T&E Committee will review the transportation portion of the FY23-28 CIP. The meeting will include an overview of the transportation capital program and a review of bridge, highway maintenance, road and traffic engineering projects.
A second Committee meeting is scheduled for March 9 to review mass transit, pedestrian facilities bikeways and facility planning projects. In addition, a meeting is tentatively scheduled for April to review Parking Lot District (PLD) projects with the PLD operating budgets.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Chris Conklin, director, Department of Transportation (DOT); Emil Wolanin, deputy director, DOT; Hannah Henn, deputy director, DOT; Tim Cupples, chief, Division of Transportation Engineering, DOT; Richard Dorsey, chief, Division of Highway Services, DOT; Michael Paylor, chief, Division of Traffic Engineering and Operations, DOT; Brady Goldsmith, chief, Management Services, DOT; Anita Aryeetey, OMB; Derrick Harrigan, OMB; and Gary Nalven (OMB).
The Council and 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 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 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: 22-075