For Immediate Release: Friday, November 26, 2021
Council will review and approve capital project priorities to send to the State Delegation; Committees will receive an update on migrant and asylum-seeking children and families and interview candidates to fill a public seat on the WSSC Water Commission Inspector General Appointment Committee
The joint Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education and Culture (E&C) Committee will meet on Monday, Nov. 29 at 9:30 a.m. to receive an update on migrant and asylum-seeking children and families.
The members of the HHS Committee include Chair and Council Vice President Gabe Albornoz and Councilmembers Evan Glass (Lead for Homelessness & Vulnerable Communities) and Craig Rice.
The members of the E&C Committee include Chair Craig Rice and Councilmembers Will Jawando (Lead for Libraries) and Nancy Navarro.
The Council will meet at 12:30 p.m. to review and approve a list of capital project priorities to send to the Montgomery County State Delegation.
The Audit Committee will meet at 1:30 p.m. to interview candidates to fill a public seat on the WSSC Water Commission Inspector General Appointment Committee.
The members of the Audit Committee include Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee Chair Nancy Navarro, Council President Tom Hucker, Vice President Gabe Albornoz, Councilmember Andrew Friedson and Councilmember Sidney Katz.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Migrant and Asylum-Seeking Children and Families
Briefing: The joint HHS and E&C Committee will receive an update on national, regional and local issues regarding the arrival of migrant children who have come to live with approved sponsors through the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) and newly arriving migrant and asylum-seeking children and families who are now residents of Montgomery County. The joint Committee’s most recent update on the topic was provided on July 22, 2021.
The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) convened a steering committee with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) to plan and coordinate a response so that the county is well prepared to address the needs of newly arriving migrant and asylum-seeking children and families. The response model will strengthen interagency coordination and partnerships with community-based organizations. The implementation plan includes the following action areas: communication and outreach, navigation and case management (including access to health and mental health), legal services, positive youth development and recreation, anti-discrimination, public safety and trafficking prevention, and education and school-based services.
According to the ORR, 1,230 unaccompanied children have been placed with sponsors in Montgomery County between January and September. The District of Columbia Metropolitan Region has been the destination for 4,575 children with 1,678 living with sponsors in Prince George’s County, 1,360 in Fairfax County and 307 in the District of Columbia. Children and families may also arrive through other avenues without going through the ORR process.
Those expected to attend and provide information include Dr. Raymond Crowel, director, DHHS; JoAnn Barnes, consultant, DHHS; Diane Vu, director, Office of Community Partnerships; Luis Cardona, administrator, Positive Youth Development, DHHS; Monica Martin, administrator, Child/Adolescent School and Community-Based Services, DHHS; Damon Monteleone, assistant chief, Office of Teaching, Learning, and Schools, MCPS; Everett Davis, acting associate superintendent, Student, Family, Support, and Engagement, MCPS; Margarita I. Bohorquez, acting director, Student, Family, and School Services – International Admissions & Enrollment, MCPS; Dr. Jennifer Norton, director, Department of English Learners and Multilingual Education, Curriculum and Instructional Programs; and Diego Uriburu, executive director, Identity, Inc.
Review and vote expected: The Council will meet to review and approve a list of capital project priorities to send to the State Delegation, as a supplement to the priorities presented on Nov. 15, 2021. In addition, the Council will review and approve a letter to Governor Hogan regarding the Office of Immigration Affairs and review and take positions on local and bi-county bills.
The list of priority capital projects includes $18 million for the Restoration Center to provide a continuum of care for those in crisis in an appropriate community-based setting, $20 million to support Bethesda Metro Station south entrance improvements, $18 million for the Zero Emissions Bus Program, $20 million for Veirs Mill Road Flash Bus Rapid Transit, $13.5 million for Great Seneca Science Corridor transit vehicles which would provide transit service to and from Shady Grove Metro Station, $25 million for personal living quarters, and $74 million for the new Criminal Justice Center to replace the existing Montgomery County detention Center (MCDC).
Those expected to attend and provide information include Melanie Wenger, director, Office of Intergovernmental Relations (OIR); Kathleen Boucher, special assistant to director, OIR; Leslie Frey, legislative analyst, OIR; Sara Morningstar, federal relations coordinator and legislative analyst, OIR; and Amy Samman, legislative analyst, OIR.
WSSC Inspector General Appointment Committee Candidates
Interview: The Audit Committee will conduct interviews with candidates to fill a public seat on the WSSC Water Commission Inspector General Appointment Committee. The Committee will recommend an Inspector General to WSSC Water. The Committee will consist of one WSSC Water Commissioner from Montgomery County, one WSSC Water Commissioner from Prince George's County, one member of the public selected by the Montgomery County Council and one member of the public selected by the Prince George's County Council.
The WSSC Water Office of the Inspector General (IG) was established by Maryland General Assembly House Bill Number 419, Chapter 130. The IG is responsible for investigating claims of mismanagement, misconduct, fraud, waste and abuse and conducting an annual audit of WSSC Water operations.
The Appointment Committee will review and recommend potential candidates to the Commission for appointment as IG. The IG will be appointed by the Commission from the list of recommended candidates. The Committee will recommend a list of three to six candidates. Upon appointment of the IG, the Appointment Committee will be terminated.
The 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 this fall 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 will 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: 21-481