Below is Council President Stewart’s full statement:

Coming into this year, we knew there would be challenges ahead but we remained committed to developing a budget that meets the collective needs of our diverse community and underscores our values. 

The Montgomery County Council’s budget process for fiscal year 2026 was inclusive, transparent and collaborative.  

And this Council delivered for our residents and businesses.  

As Council President, one of my top priorities was increasing transparency and participation for all community members. 

I want to thank everyone who came and testified, who wrote to us, joined us for committee meetings, and worked late into the night to prepare for our budget discussions.

I am proud that we did not turn away anyone from any public hearing, as we listened to the views of over 300 residents during our budget hearings, reviewed thousands of emails and met with numerous groups.  

This was a difficult budget. Simply put, the multiplicity of needs in our community are growing, and the decisions we had to make were tough. This has been exacerbated by the chaos at the federal level. 

Not even five months into the Trump presidency, Montgomery County, the state of Maryland, and the entire region are facing the most uncertainty we’ve seen in decades. 

Federal cuts are and will touch all our lives and impact every public service that our residents rely on. 

Not to mention the thousands of federal employees and contractors living or working in Montgomery County who have been laid off.  

But, here in Montgomery County we continue to live by our values of being a welcoming and inclusive community with a thriving economy with the best education system to prepare our young people and families for the future.   

And our FY26 budget reflects that. 

We worked with our public school system to make sure MCPS received 99.8 percent of their budget request. And laid the foundation for future collaboration and partnership to make sure we meet the needs of our students and families, as well as the needs of educators and school staff. 

We provided increased funding for our public safety departments and expanded the successful Drone as First Responder Program to Germantown. 

We also increased funding for the Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security to provide continuity in emergency planning, training, and outreach, despite reductions and eliminations of federal grant funding. 

And we allocated $1.2 million for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program to protect our nonprofit and faith organizations and houses of worship. 

We prioritized resources for our social safety net programs. We are seeing an increase in needs in our community for food, housing, mental health and other basic needs and we expect this trend to continue for the next few years. This budget lays a solid foundation for us to meet these challenges. 

The Council approved nearly $14 million for the Office of Food Systems Resilience to provide critical food resources.  

Just this week we learned that Montgomery County’s unhoused population has increased 32 percent over the last year. To combat these rising rates, we’ve allocated $62 million for Services to End and Prevent Homelessness, and over $200 million in services to support children, youth and families, older adults and people with disabilities.  

And I’m very proud to say we increased funding to $66 million for Behavioral Health and Crisis Services, promoting mental health services, treatment and recovery services, and culturally competent care for people of all ages with behavioral health needs. 

Investing in mental health is not just about treating illness, it promotes a holistic approach to well-being, enabling individuals to thrive emotionally, socially and physically. 

As someone who has worked in the field of reproductive and sexual health, I am incredibly proud of our public health department in stepping in and filling the void as we see more and more cuts from the federal government. 

We are also investing in housing, transportation, and economic development, so that we not only meet the needs of our residents today but are also planning for the future.

We continued and increased funding for affordable housing assistance, recognizing the role that safe and affordable housing has as a social determinant of health. We increased rental assistance as well as funding to finance, construct, and preserve affordable housing in the County.  

As we face uncertain economic times ahead, the Council approved economic development initiatives focused on job creation and business development, including funding for WorkSource Montgomery which is standing up a specialized office to assist federal workers now looking for jobs. We also made ongoing investments in the Institute for Health Computing, which is creating jobs in AI and machine learning innovation. 

We are making Ride On free for all residents in alignment with our transit equity and climate goals and to encourage ridership growth. 

We also rejected proposed cuts for our Parks – one of the most valued and defining assets of our community and partially restored Green Bank funds to ensure we continue our work on climate change.  

And, as the Chair of the Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee, I am particularly glad that we crafted this budget including reserves of approximately 11.2 percent.  

We did all this without raising tax rates this year. 

We accomplished all these goals by coming together with residents, our non-profit partners, union members, our department staff and agency heads, to discuss and make tough choices.

Producing a budget of this scale, under the strain of state and federal cuts and economic uncertainty, requires diligence, careful review and collaboration. 

And, a lot of chocolate and coffee. 

Thank you to my Council colleagues for moving with great care, attentiveness and accountability to best support our diverse community. 

We made difficult compromises and came together to balance our priorities and keep our residents at the forefront of every decision we made. 

Thank you to my team and to our entire Council central staff and staff in my colleague’s offices for your meticulous and thoughtful work throughout the budget process and throughout the entire year. Your amazing work is the engine that keeps us moving forward. 

This work truly is a team effort, and it is a great privilege and honor work with all of you. 

I’m proud of the way this Council has come together to prepare for the challenges ahead, as we budget for today and tomorrow. 

Thank you.