For Immediate Release: Wednesday, April 17, 2024
The Public Safety (PS) Committee will meet on Thursday, April 18 at 9:30 a.m. to review the FY25 Operating Budgets for the Police Accountability Board non-departmental account (NDA), Prisoner Medical Services NDA and the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD).
The members of the PS Committee include Chair Sidney Katz and Councilmembers Dawn Luedtke and Kristin Mink.
The Planning, Housing and Parks (PHP) Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. to review the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Operating Budgets for the Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings (OZAH), and Board of Appeals, the Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA) and the Housing Initiative Fund (HIF). In addition, the committee will review Executive Regulation 11-23, Townhouse Rent Rates for Moderately Priced Housing and HIF Payments for developments of 11 to 19 units. The committee also will review the FY25-30 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) for Community Development and Housing – Affordable Housing Acquisition and Preservation, the Countywide Façade Easement Program and White Oak Commercial Area Improvements and Revitalization.
The members of the PHP Committee include Chair and Council President Andrew Friedson and Councilmembers Natali Fani-González and Will Jawando.
The Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee will meet at 1:30 p.m. to review the FY25 Operating Budget for the Guaranteed Income NDA. The committee also will review the FY25 Operating Budgets for Public Health and Minority Programs in addition to Children, Youth and Family Services within the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).
The members of the HHS Committee include Chair Gabe Albornoz and Councilmembers Dawn Luedtke and Laurie-Anne Sayles.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Police Accountability Board NDA
Review: The PS Committee will review the $788,743 FY25 Operating Budget for the Police Accountability Board NDA recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of $279,521, or 55 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The Police Accountability Board (PAB) and the Administrative Charging Committee (ACC) are two entities created by the State Police Accountability Act of 2021. They form a new disciplinary framework for state, county and municipal police officers that is meant to provide more transparency and accountability for police officers who face complaints from members of the public. The PAB is an advisory entity that, in part, reviews cases heard by the ACC to determine if there are any trends or other concerns of note in police disciplinary cases. The PAB also appoints certain members of the ACC, makes recommendations to the County Executive and functions as a research and policy entity in policing matters.
Review: The PS Committee will review the $20,000 FY25 Operating Budget for the Prisoner Medical Services NDA recommended by the County Executive, which represents a 100 percent increase from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. This NDA is administered by the Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) and provides reimbursements for medical costs incurred by persons under arrest, but not under the custody of the Department of Correction and Rehabilitation (DOCR). There have been no annual expenditures for this NDA since FY16; however, the County will provide for all costs incurred no matter how much is in the initial budget for the NDA.
Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD)
Review: The PS Committee will review the more than $329 million FY25 Operating Budget for MCPD recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of nearly $17 million, or 5.4 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The largest increases in costs are a result of compensation adjustments and increases, one-time lapse adjustments, retirement adjustments and personnel costs. Other increases are attributed to enhancements to the Drone and First Responder Program, records management systems and digital forensic evidence compliance. Additional detail is available in the staff report.
Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings (OZAH)
Review: The PHP Committee will review the $814,477 FY25 Operating Budget for the Office of OZAH recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of $58,489, or 7.7 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The increase is a result of personnel, technical and same-services adjustments that do not constitute new or enhanced programs. OZAH conducts due process hearings about land use and other administrative matters, conducts public hearings and prepares reports and recommendations for the Council.
Review: The PHP Committee will review the $581,642 FY25 Operating Budget for the Board of Appeals, which represents a decrease of $63,273, or 9.8 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The decrease is a result of a shift of $102,600 and 0.5 full-time employees (FTEs) from the Board’s budget to the Office of the County Attorney for the attorney assigned to the Board. Additional line item increases in the Board’s budget reflect personnel and technical adjustments that do not constitute new or enhanced programs. In addition, the Board has submitted a memo to the PHP Committee requesting an additional $7,000 to address an anticipated shortfall in funding identified after to the FY25 budget submission. The Board of Appeals has authority to hear and decide cases involving certain land use issues, including modification of special exception and variances from the development standards or other requirements of Montgomery County’s Zoning Ordinance.
Review: The PHP Committee will review Executive Regulation 11-23, which would clarify the rent rate for townhomes in the Moderately Priced Dwelling Unit (MPDU) program and provide a basis on which to calculate payments due to the Housing Initiative Fund (HIF) for rental buildings that are between 11 to 19 units. In addition, the regulation would establish a process to collect payments and make stylistic editorial changes to be consistent with other MPDU regulations.
Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA)
Review: The PHP Committee will review the more than $79 million FY25 Operating Budget for DHCA recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of more than $2.3 million, or 3.4 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The recommendation for the FY25 budget is composed of more than $14 million from the general fund, $56 million from the Housing Initiative Fund (HIF) and $8.8 million from the Grant Fund. DHCA works to preserve and increase the supply of affordable housing, maintain existing housing in a safe and sanitary condition, preserve the safety and quality of residential and commercial areas, ensure fair and equitable relations between landlords and tenants, and support the success of common ownership communities.
Review: The PHP Committee will review the $56 million FY25 Operating Budget for the HIF recommended by the County Executive, which represents a decrease of nearly than $1.1 million, or 1.9 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The recommended budget for HIF includes a $65,931, or three percent, inflationary adjustment for non-profit contracts. The HIF is a combination of operating and capital funds that supports the production and preservation of affordable housing through financing agreements.
The committee also will review the FY25-30 CIPs for Affordable Housing Acquisition and Preservation, Revitalization for Troubled and Distressed Common Ownership Communities, Countywide Façade Easement Program and White Oak Commercial Area Improvements and Revitalization. The FY25 CIP for the Affordable Housing Acquisition and Perseveration Project is $212 million over the six-year period. This project provides funding for acquisition and renovation of properties for the purpose of preserving or increasing the County's affordable housing inventory.
In addition, the FY25 CIP for the Revitalization for Troubled and Distressed Common Ownership Communities Project is $10 million over the six-year period. The FY25 CIP for the Countywide Façade Easement Program is $3.5 million over the six-year period. The FY25 CIP for the White Oak Commercial Area Improvements and Revitalization Program is $3.7 million over the six-year period.
Review: The HHS Committee will review the $1.2 million FY25 Operating Budget for the Guaranteed Income NDA recommended by the County Executive, which represents a decrease of more than $2 million, or 62 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. First started in FY22, the Guaranteed Income NDA funded a three-year pilot of the Guaranteed Income Program, whose purpose was to provide direct, recurring cash payments to targeted groups of people without strings attached. The goals of the program were to alleviate poverty, provide a form of financial stability and give people the ability to make their own choices to improve their economic position. FY25 is the final fiscal year of the pilot and the remaining program participants will be off-boarded and the program will be evaluated.
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) - Public Health and Minority Programs
Review: The HHS Committee will review the nearly $119 million FY25 Operating Budget for Public Health and Minority Programs within DHHS recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of more than $13 million, or 13 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. Public Health Services protects and promote the health and safety of County residents by implementing intervention strategies to contain or prevent disease, fostering public-private partnerships to increase access to health services, implementing programs and strategies to address health needs, providing health education, evaluating the effectiveness programs and licensing and inspecting public health and safety facilities and institutions.
Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) - Children, Youth and Family Services
Review: The HHS Committee will review the nearly $125 million FY25 Operating Budget for Children, Youth and Family Services within DHHS recommended by the County Executive, which represents an increase of more than $4.2 million, or 3.5 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. Children, Youth and Family Services is organized into eight program areas that provide protection, prevention, intervention, treatment and financial assistance services for children and their families in Montgomery County.
The Committee 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.
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Release ID: 24-150