For Immediate Release: Tuesday, January 21, 2020
Also on Jan. 21: Council scheduled to vote on bills that would require landlords to provide air conditioning to tenants and authorizing inspector general to hire staff as merit employees
The Council will meet on Tuesday, Jan. 21 at 10:30 a.m. Individuals interested in attending a Council meeting should confirm the information on the day of the meeting by visiting the Council’s web page or by calling the Council’s Legislative Information Office at 240-777-7832. All meetings are held in the Council Office Building (100 Maryland Ave., Rockville, Md) in the third floor hearing room, unless otherwise noted. Council staff reports for all items on the Council’s agenda can be found here.
The Council will introduce the following bills:
Bill 2-20, Bicycles – Registration – Amendments
The Council will introduce Bill 2-20, which would permit voluntary registration of a bicycle owned by a County resident for personal use. Council Vice President Tom Hucker and Councilmembers Will Jawando, Evan Glass and Hans Riemer are the lead sponsors. Council President Sidney Katz is a cosponsor. Bill 2-20 also would do the following:
The goal of this legislation is to eliminate a regulatory burden on residents who own bicycles. A public hearing on Bill 2-20 is scheduled for Feb. 11 at 1:30 p.m.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#MoCoBikeRegistration is being used for this bill on social media.
Bill 3-20, Boards, Committees and Commissions - Compensation, Reimbursement, and Stipends
The Council will introduce Bill 3-20, which would make most public members of boards, committees and commissions (BCCs) eligible to receive either reimbursement of expenses, or an annual stipend of $1,200. The purpose of the stipend would be to help defray the member's childcare, travel, and other costs associated with serving on the BCC. Bill 3-20 also would do the following:
A public hearing on Bill 3-20 is scheduled for Feb. 11 at 1:30 p.m.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#StipendsforMoCoService is being used for this bill on social media.
Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 20-01, Solar Collection System – AR Zone Standards
The Council will introduce ZTA 20-01, which would revise the solar collection system use standards to allow larger facilities in the Agricultural Resource (AR) zone. Councilmember Hans Riemer and Council Vice President Tom Hucker are the lead sponsors. The total amount of collection systems on all parcels would be limited to 1,800 acres. Any collector system constructed under the proposed amendment must be designated pollinator-friendly under the Maryland Pollinator-Friendly Designation Program. A public hearing on ZTA 20-01 is scheduled for Feb. 25 at 1:30 p.m.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
The Council is scheduled to vote on the following bills
Bill 24-19, Landlord-Tenant Relations – Obligations of Landlord – Air Conditioning
The Council is scheduled to vote on Bill 24-19, which would require a landlord to provide and maintain air conditioning service for rental housing located in the County between June 1 and September 30 and establish standards for air conditioning service provided by a landlord. Council Vice President Tom Hucker is the lead sponsor. Councilmembers Will Jawando, Gabe Albornoz and Nancy Navarro are cosponsors. The goal of this bill is to ensure that tenants in rental housing have access to working air conditioning to improve public health and living conditions.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#MoCoRentalAC is being used for this bill on social media.
Bill 40-19, Inspector General – Staff – Amendments
The Council is scheduled to vote on Bill 40-19, which would authorize the inspector general to hire one or more deputies as a term merit employee and other staff as a merit employee. Councilmembers Nancy Navarro and Andrew Friedson and Council President Sidney Katz are the lead sponsors. Under current law, the inspector general must hire each staff member as a term merit employee with a maximum term that ends at the same time as the four-year term of the inspector general. This requires a new inspector general to begin a new term with no existing staff members or institutional experience. It also makes it more difficult to recruit staff when an inspector general is appointed to either a new term or to complete the term of an inspector general who leaves early. The goal of this legislation is to improve the operation of the Office of the Inspector General.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#InspectorGeneralStaff is being used for this bill on social media.
The Council will hold the following public hearings:
Bill 41-19, Tree Canopy Fees – Exemptions
At 1:30 p.m. the Council will hold a public hearing on Bill 41-19, which would amend tree canopy fees exemptions to include land disturbances by any public use airport, and generally amend the provisions for tree canopy fee exemptions. Councilmember Craig Rice is the lead sponsor. The goal of this legislation is to assist airport operations by eliminating future tree canopy fees for public airports and refund any fees paid since Jan. 1, 2017. The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#MoCoTreeCanopy is being used for this bill on social media.
Bill 33-19, Police – Community Policing
At 7:30 p.m. the Council will hold a public hearing on Bill 33-19. Councilmembers Nancy Navarro and Craig Rice are the lead sponsors. Council Vice President Tom Hucker and Councilmembers Gabe Albornoz and Will Jawando are cosponsors. As introduced, Bill 33-19 would create community policing guidelines focused on initiating and engaging in positive non-enforcement activities, improving cultural competence and promoting de-escalation tactics. The bill also includes reporting requirements for the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD).
The goal of this legislation is to encourage greater transparency and accountability in law enforcement. A Public Safety (PS) Committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 13. The Council staff report can be viewed here.
#TransparentAndAccountablePolicing is being used for this item on social media.
The Council meeting will be televised live by County Cable Montgomery (CCM). The channel can be viewed on Cable Channels 996 (high definition) and 6 (standard definition) on Comcast; Channels 1056 (HD) and 6 (SD) on RCN; and Channel 30 on Verizon.
The Council meeting also will be available live via streaming through the Council web site at: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/ondemand/index.html and on Facebook Live.
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Release ID: 20-019