For Immediate Release: Tuesday, June 11, 2019
Also on June 11: Council begins Montgomery County Planning Board interviews
The Council meeting on Tuesday, June 11 will begin at 9:30 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 Communication 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.
Racial Equity and Social Justice Initiative
On Tuesday the Council will receive an update on the Racial Equity and Social Justice Initiative. The Government Alliance on Racial Equity (GARE) defines racial equity as “when race can no longer be used to predict life outcomes and outcomes for all groups are improved.” Racial equity and social justice are urgent moral and socioeconomic endeavors for Montgomery County leaders.
This process began in 2018 with a Montgomery County Council resolution that was spearheaded by Council President Nancy Navarro and cosponsored by County Executive Marc Elrich. This process includes reports on racial equity and racial disparities by the Council’s Office of Legislative Oversight; leadership training through the Racial Equity Institute and Leadership Montgomery; community meetings and ongoing work among government leaders and staff to create a Racial Equity and Social Justice Policy for Montgomery County Government.
In Jan. 2019 as part of the County leadership trainings on racial equity, which included leaders from the Executive Branch, Montgomery County Public Schools, Montgomery Planning and other agencies, Council President Nancy Navarro shared the Council’s timeline for developing a Racial Equity and Social Justice Policy with legislation being introduced in the fall of 2019. Council President Navarro also invited other agencies to join in the process of creating and applying a racial equity and social justice lens to decision making.
Council President Navarro and County Executive Marc Elrich, with the support of the full Council, launched a community engagement campaign on March 13 at the Silver Spring Civic Center that included the release of Community Conversation Toolkits in English and Spanish.
Tuesday’s Council discussion will include a briefing on OLO Report 2018-8, Racial Equity in Government Decision Making: Lessons from the Field, and a briefing on the more recent OLO Report 2019-7, Racial Equity Profile for Montgomery County, which will be released at the Council meeting. The Jupiter Independent Research Group compiled the Racial Equity Profile for Montgomery County, which provides benchmarking data that describes how racial and ethnic groups in the County are meeting expected levels of performance.
The Council President also launched the “Equity Matters” website. Its contents are updated by the Legislative Information Office, including a calendar for upcoming activities that will culminate in the development of a Racial Equity and Social Justice Policy for the County. Activities undertaken to date include:
A second County government community conversation is scheduled for June 26 in Germantown at the BlackRock Center for the Arts. Individuals and community-based organizations have been asked to complete their community conversations by July 15 to inform the Council’s development of a proposed Racial Equity and Social Justice Policy in the fall. The Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) will develop a report summarizing feedback received from the community conversations.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Montgomery County Planning Board Interviews
The five-member Montgomery County Planning Board, which is part of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, works to maintain and improve the quality of life in the County. The Planning Board makes recommendations on issues such as growth, development, transportation, environmental protection, agriculture, historical preservation and forest conservation. The Planning Board is also responsible for setting land use and protecting parkland resources. On Tuesday at 2 p.m. the Council will interview Planning Board applicants Casey Anderson and Julian Haffner. On Thursday, June 13 at 9:30 a.m. the Council will interview Planning Board applicants William Kirwan and Charles Kauffman. On June 13 at 1:30 p.m. the Council will interview Planning Board applicants Jennifer Russel, Partap Verma and Brandy Brooks.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Public Hearings
All public hearings will be held on June 11 at 1:30 p.m.
Resolution to Amend 2016-2020 Subdivision Staging Policy (SSP) Regarding Blighted/Condemned Buildings or Affordable Housing
The Council will hold a public hearing on a resolution to amend the 2016-2020 SSP regarding blighted and condemned buildings or affordable housing. Councilmembers Craig Rice and Hans Riemer are the sponsors of this amendment, which would allow a project with housing to be approved in a cluster or individual school service area that is in moratorium, if the project would generate ten or fewer school students (among other conditions). The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Declaration of No Further Need: Disposition of Darnestown Telecommunications Tower
The Council will hold a public hearing and vote on a Declaration of No Further Need: Disposition of Darnestown Telecommunications Tower. This resolution would approve the disposition of space on the telecommunications tower located at 12100 Darnestown Road, the site of Rockville Fire Station 31 and the use of adjoining land for a 2,000 square foot base station. The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Bill 10-19, Legislative Branch - Economic Impact Statements – Amendments
The Council will hold a public hearing on Bill 10-19, Legislative Branch - Economic Impact Statements - Amendments. Councilmember Andrew Friedson is the lead sponsor. All other Councilmembers are cosponsors. The goal of this bill is to ensure that the economic impacts of new legislation on residents, on the County’s budget and on businesses and other stakeholders is thoroughly assessed. A Government Operations and Fiscal Policy (GO) Committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for July 15. The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Key search terms for this legislation on the Council’s website include economic impact statements, Office of Legislative Oversight and legislative analysis. #MoCoEconomicImpact is being used for this bill on social media.
Bill 11-19, Administration - Internal Audit - Inspector General – Amendments
The Council will hold a public hearing on Bill 11-19, Administration - Internal Audit - Inspector General - Amendments. The Audit Committee is the lead sponsor. The goal of this bill is to improve the legislative oversight of the County’s internal accounting and contracting processes. A GO Committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for July 15. The Council staff report can be viewed here .
# # #
Release ID: 19-203