Greetings!


Welcome to my Legislative Newsletter, highlighting Council Resolutions and Council Bills proposed by the Howard County Council.

As your County Council representative, I encourage you to review this information and lend your voice by testifying via email or in person. To voice your support or opposition, please email councilmail@howardcountymd.gov. To sign-up in advance to testify at the upcoming Public Hearing click here.
It is my pleasure to serve you, your family, and the residents of District 2. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact my office by calling (410) 313-2001 or by emailing ojones@howardcountymd.gov. I hope you will continue to stay engaged by visiting my council website at https://cc.howardcountymd.gov/Districts/District-2.

Sincerely,
The Process

The County Council is responsible for adopting the laws of the County. The legislative process generally follows a monthly cycle:


  • 1st Monday- New legislation is introduced; legislation from prior month is given final consideration
  • 3rd Monday- Legislative Public Hearing on legislation introduced that month
  • Following the Legislative Public Hearing a Legislative Work Session is held, if needed


Council Bills must be signed or vetoed by the County Executive within 10 days of the Council's presentation of passed legislation.

Howard County Council Appointments and County Council Election Results for 2024

Howard County Council Chairpersons

Chair: Councilmember Deb Jung, District 4

Vice-Chair: Councilmember Liz Walsh, District 1


Zoning Board

Chair: Councilmember Liz Walsh, District 1

Vice-Chair: Councilmember Dr. Opel Jones, District 2


Board of License Commissioners

Chair: Councilmember David Yungmann, District 5

Vice-Chair: Councilmember Dr. Opel Jones, District 2


Maryland Association of Counties Legislative Committee

Representative: Councilmember Christiana Rigby, District 3

Alternate: Councilmember David Yungmann, District 5


National Associations of Counties

Representative: Christiana Rigby, District 3

Alternate: Councilmember David Yungmann, District 5

Council-Related Legislation

Howard County Council Legislation


Unless otherwise noted, the following legislation is introduced by the Chairperson at the request of the County Executive.

Final Consideration

Appointments


CR78-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of David A. Balderson to the Board of Social Services.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR79-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Ashton Vinh-Khoa Bui to the Asian American and Pacific Islander Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR80-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Hannah Chang to the Commission for Women.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved as amended


CR81-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Matthew Daddio to the Housing and Community Development Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR82-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Shreya Dinesh to the Recreation and Parks Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR83-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Hazel A. Domangue to the Advisory Board on Consumer Protection.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR84-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Tigana Duncan to the Housing Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR85-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Rashida George to the Adult-Use Cannabis Advisory Panel.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR86-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Theodore R. Hart to the Public Ethics Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR87-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Jimmie Jennings to the Housing and Community Development Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR88-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Mabelle Xinran Liu to the Environmental Sustainability Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR89-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Xinyu Liu to the Advisory Board on Consumer Protection.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR90-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Christopher Maynard to the Adult-Use Cannabis Advisory Panel.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Tabled


CR91-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Valerie B. Montague to the Human Rights Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR92-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Maricarmen Perez-Sarabia to the La Alianza Latina Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR93-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Lucia Reyna to the Adult-Use Cannabis Advisory Panel.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR94-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Charles Alan Sharp to the AdultUse Cannabis Advisory Panel.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR95-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Shannon Beasley Taitt to the Human Rights Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR96-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Sean Thomas to the Howard County Commission for Veterans and Military Families.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR97-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Sakshi Vineet Tirodkar to the Human Rights Commission.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


Reappointments


CR98-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of Dana Couch to the Local Behavioral Health Advisory Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR99-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of Phillip Dodge to the Multimodal Transportation Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR100-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of David Drasin to the Multimodal Transportation Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR101-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of William Rovito to the Board of Directors of the Economic Development Authority.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR102-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of Gregory Schuckman to the Commission on Disabilities.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR103-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of Dr. Andre’a Watkins to the Local Behavioral Health Advisory Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved


CR104-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the reappointment of John Way to the Local Behavioral Health Advisory Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Approved



General


CB38-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT amending the Pay Plan for Howard County; providing pay scales for members of the International Association of Firefighters Local 2000 to be effective July 1, 2024 and January 1, 2025; providing classification codes for the Office of Agriculture Administrator and amending classification codes for the Consumer Protection Administrator; providing for the application of this Act; and generally relating to the Pay Plan for Howard County.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB39-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT pursuant to Section 1.111(e) of the Howard County Code, approving provisions in a collective bargaining agreement between Howard County and the International Association of Firefighters, Howard County Local 2000 that are in conflict with the provisions of Title 1 “Human Resources” of the Howard County Code or the Employee Manual; and generally relating to the collective bargaining agreement between Howard County and the International Association of Firefighters, Howard County Local 2000.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed as amended


CB40-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT adding certain positions that are appointed by the Chief Administrative Officer and removing a position that is no longer appointed by the Director of the Department of Community Resources and Services; and generally relating to the appointing authorities for Executive Exempt positions in the Howard County Code.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed as amended


CB41-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT pursuant to Section 612 of the Howard County Charter, approving a multi-year Agreement between Howard County, Maryland and ePlus Technology, Inc. for hardware and software support offered by Cisco and NetApp, authorizing the County Executive to make changes to the Agreement, under certain conditions; authorizing the County Executive to execute the Agreement; and generally relating to the Agreement.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB42-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT pursuant to Section 612 of the Howard County Charter, approving a multi-year Lease Agreement for the lease of approximately 16,416 square feet of space in Howard County, Maryland; and authorizing the County Executive to take certain actions in connection with the Lease Agreement.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB43-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN Act requiring that the owner, occupant, tenant or other person in charge of a property or premises shall provide certain entry and access; allowing certain entry in the instance that certain imminent dangers exist; and generally relating to enforcement of the Subdivision and Land Development Regulations and the Zoning Regulations.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB44-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

AN ACT making emergency appropriations pursuant to Section 610(b) of the Howard County Charter and amending the Annual Budget and Appropriation for Fiscal Year 2025 to provide additional spending authority received from the Interagency Commission on School Construction in Capital Projects E1058, Systemic Renovations, and E1059, Roofing; and declaring that this Act is an Emergency Bill necessary to meet a public emergency affecting life, health or property.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CR105-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION amending the Howard County Board of Education Budget, as adopted by Council Resolution No. 48-2024, to account for additional funding received from the State of Maryland for capital projects; and generally relating to the Board of Education Budget for Fiscal Year 2025.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CR106-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the Howard County Council

A RESOLUTION setting the compensation of the Howard County Alcoholic Beverages Hearing Board.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB45-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the Howard County Council

AN ACT amending the compensation of the members of the Board of Appeals; and generally relating to the compensation of the Board of Appeals members.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed


CB46-2024 - Introduced by The Chair at the Request of the Citizens' Election Fund Commission Co-sponsor(s) Liz Walsh, Christiana Rigby, Deb Jung AN ACT amending the Citizens’ Election Fund provision of the Code to clarify the role of certified candidates for County Executive or County Council in the Citizens' Election Fund system; and generally related to the Citizens’ Election Fund system.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Extended the life (October 15, 2024) and tabled


CB47-2024 - Introduced by Liz Walsh AN ACT establishing the Office of the Inspector General; specifying the selection, term, qualifications, and responsibilities of the Inspector General; providing for the referral of certain matters; specifying the funding and powers of the Office of the Inspector General; requiring certain reports; establishing the Inspector General Advisory Board; specifying the composition, powers, and duties of the Inspector General Advisory Board; specifying the selection, term, and responsibilities of the Inspector General Advisory Board; and generally relating to the Office of the Inspector General.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Extended the life (October 15, 2024) and tabled


CB48-2024 - Introduced by Liz Walsh AN ACT supporting the creation of the Office of the Inspector General; amending the process for whistleblower complaints; repealing certain duties of the County Auditor; amending the composition of the Howard County Ethics Commission; and generally relating to supporting the Office of the Inspector General.

My Vote: Yes

Status: Extended the life (October 15, 2024) and tabled


Introduced Legislation


CR107-2024 (Late File) - Introduced by: Opel Jones, Deb Jung, Christiana Rigby, Liz Walsh, and David Yungmann A RESOLUTION proposing to amend the County Charter to create an Office of the Inspector General. 

My Vote: Yes

Status: Passed as amended


Tabled Legislation


CR69-2024 - Introduced by The Chairperson at the request of the County Executive

A RESOLUTION confirming the appointment of Reginald Avery to the Alcoholic Beverage Hearing Board.

Status: Withdrawn


Upcoming Council Meetings

To access the most up-to-date calendar of meetings in its entirety, click here.