Montgomery County Council Committee Meetings on May 1, 2024
MARYLAND, April 30 - Committees will review multiple FY25 Operating Budgets including the Department of Finance, Labor Relations, Human Resources, Montgomery College, Montgomery County Public Schools and funds for Schools-Based Programs and Out of School Time Programs
The Government Operations and Fiscal Policy (GO) Committee will meet on Wednesday, May 1 at 9:30 a.m. to review Bill 9-24, Group G Pension - Social Security Integration and a $2.65 million supplemental appropriation to the FY24 Operating Budget for the Department of Finance for a timekeeping system upgrade. In addition, the committee will review the recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Department of Finance, Risk Management NDA, Debt Service, State Property Tax Services NDA, Working Families Income Supplement NDA, the Office of Labor Relations, Labor Management Relations Committee NDA, the Office of Human Resources, Office of the County Executive and the Community Engagement Cluster.
The members of the GO Committee include Chair and Council Vice President Kate Stewart, Council President Andrew Friedson and Councilmember Sidney Katz.
The Education and Culture (EC) Committee will meet at 9:30 a.m. to continue review the recommended FY25 Operating Budgets for Montgomery College and Montgomery County Public Schools.
The members of the EC Committee include Chair Will Jawando and Councilmembers Gabe Albornoz and Kristin Mink.
The joint Planning, Housing and Parks (PHP) and EC Committee will meet at 1:30 p.m. to review the recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Historical Activities NDA and School-Based Programs and Out of School Time Programs.
The members of the PHP Committee include Chair and Council President Friedson and Councilmembers Natali Fani-González and Jawando.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Bill 9-24, Group G Pension - Social Security Integration
Review: The GO Committee will review Bill 9-24, Group G Pension – Social Security Integration, which would amend the Group G pension amount for the Integrated Retirement Plan. The bill is needed as a result of the newly negotiated Memorandum of Agreement between the Montgomery County Government and the International Association of Firefighters, Local 1664, AFL-CIO, which requires the Executive to submit the agreed upon legislation no later than Sept. 2024. Under the bill, eligible bargaining unit members would receive enhanced pension benefits. County expenditures would increase by approximately $600,000 in FY25 and $1.2 million annually after FY25.
The lead sponsor is the Council President, at the request of the County Executive.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $131 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Department of Finance, which is an increase of more than $19 million, or 17 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The department’s recommended budget includes expenditures in the general fund and the self-insurance internal service fund. The Executive’s FY25 recommendation increases total expenditures in the general fund by more than $2.3 million, or 13.9 percent. Nearly all of the increase to general fund expenditures is due to compensation adjustments. In the self-insurance fund, the recommendation increases FY25 expenditures by $17.5 million or 18.4 percent. The self-insurance fund is mostly supported by contributions from the County Government through the Risk Management NDA and other participating agencies to support the self-insurance program.
Review: The GO Committee will review a $2.65 million supplemental appropriation to the FY24 Operating Budget for the Department of Finance for a timekeeping system upgrade. The appropriation is needed for an essential upgrade to the County’s timekeeping system, commonly known as MCtime. The County’s current timekeeping system as well as the scheduling software for public safety departments will reach end-of-life status in Dec. 2025 and will no longer be supported by the current vendor. To ensure that the required system upgrades can be completed in advance of Dec. 2025, the Executive is requesting funding for the upgrade in FY24.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than more than $24 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Risk Management NDA, which represents a decrease of more than $1.8 million, or 6.7 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. This NDA supports the County’s general fund contribution to the self-insurance fund.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $480 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for Debt Service, which is an increase of more than $12 million, or 2.6 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The County’s general fund supports nearly 80 percent of the recommended FY25 expenditures, with the remaining expenditures supported from other revenues or other tax supported funds. FY25 expenditures include the annual debt service of all outstanding G.O. bonds, long- and short-term lease payments and other long-term debt obligations.
State Property Tax Services NDA
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $3.5 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the State Property Tax Services NDA, which is level with the approved FY24 Operating Budget. This NDA reimburses the state for three programs that support the property tax billing administration conducted by the Department of Finance. These programs include the Montgomery County Homeowners Credit Supplement, the Homestead Credit Certification Program and the County’s share of the cost of conducting property tax assessments by the State Department of Assessments and Taxation. The NDA also funds the County Renters Property Tax Relief Supplement administered by the Department of Finance.
Working Families Income Supplement NDA
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $28 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Working Families Income Supplement NDA, which is an increase of $632,771, or 2.3 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The Working Families Income Supplement NDA provides funds to supplement Maryland’s Refundable Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and is intended to benefit working families with lower incomes in the County. Several states, including Maryland, provide state tax credits to residents who receive the Federal EITC. Maryland also provides refunds to eligible residents if their EITC exceeds their state tax liability. The state administers the County refund, so the County provides funding to the state for any County-related refunds and administrative expenses.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $2.3 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Office of Labor Relations, which is an increase of more than $736,851, or 45 percent percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The recommended budget shifts five vacant positions from other departments to the Office of Labor Relations to better centralize labor and employee relations functions in the County and reduce reliance on contractors. The additional staff will allow the office to better prepare for term bargaining, provide a higher level of support to departments and employees and help the County achieve a consistent approach to labor and employee relations.
Labor Management Relations Committee NDA
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s recommended Labor Management Relations Committee NDA, which provides funds to implement the Labor Relations Committee’s recommendations. The committee was established to foster cooperative labor relations between the County and the employees in the Municipal and County Government Employees Organization (MCGEO). There is currently a sufficient fund balance of $189,975 for use in FY25, and no additional funding is recommended.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $387 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Office of Human Resources, which is an increase of more than $44 million, or 13 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The office’s budget includes funds for business operations, the director’s office, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) compliance and diversity management, health and employee welfare, occupational medical services and training and organizational development. The largest increases include more than $41 million in claims expenditure adjustments related to the Employee Health Self Insurance Fund, $1.25 million for the department’s Classification Plan Initiative and $475,000 for Countywide training and recognition programs.
Office of the County Executive
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $7.2 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Office of the County Executive, which is an increase of $196,807, or 2.8 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The Office of the County Executive provides leadership to the community and administrative direction to the County’s departments and offices. Expenditure increases include funds for an additional economic cevelopment program manager for the Business Center Team, an investigative analyst positions for internal audits, and increases to the Business Liaisons for Small Business Support Services NDA. Funds are also included for Montgomery County to host the Bisnow Biotech conference in Sept. 2024, which will bring together representatives from tech companies, academic institutions and government agencies. Other increases include contract costs, compensation and personnel adjustments, lapse assumptions, shifting contracts and positions to other departments and miscellaneous operational costs.
Review: The GO Committee will review the County Executive’s more than $10 million recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Community Engagement Cluster, which is an increase of more than $1.4 million, or 16.8 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The recommended increase includes $140,000 to support urban district pilot programs. The Community Engagement Cluster includes the County’s Office of Community Partnerships, Commission for Women, Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center and the Volunteer Center. In addition, the cluster includes the County’s Regional Services Centers representing Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Eastern Montgomery, Mid-County, Silver Spring and UpCounty. The cluster also includes the County’s Urban Districts representing Bethesda, Friendship Heights, Silver Spring and Wheaton.
Review: The EC Committee will continue to review the more than $334 million Maintenance of Effort (MOE) FY25 Operating Budget for Montgomery College recommended by the County Executive. The recommendation is a decrease of more than $10 million, or 3 percent, from the previous year. MOE for Montgomery College requires that the County provide the same amount of local funding as in the previous year, or more than $148 million. The Executive’s recommendation fully funds the College’s request. The decrease reflects a decrease in state aid and the one-time use in FY24 of fund balances to support build out of the leased facility for the East County Center.
This meeting will continue the April 11 EC Committee discussions. The committee is expected to discuss funding for the establishment of a Collective Impact Institute at Montgomery College, a reduction in state aid and use of the college’s fund balance for capital projects.
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)
Review: The EC Committee will hold its fourth meeting to review of the Board of Education’s more than $3.3 billion requested FY25 Operating Budget for MCPS, which is an increase of more than $187 million, or 5.9 percent, over the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The tax-supported budget, which excludes grants and enterprise funds, is more than $3.1 billion. This represents an increase of more than $178 million, or 6 percent, over the FY24 approved tax-supported budget.
The Board’s request increases the local contribution from the County by more than $162 million, or 8.2 percent, over the approved FY24 local contribution. The Board’s request is more than $188 million over the required MOE level. The MOE requirement for FY25 decreased nearly $26 million from the FY24 approved funding level, which is due to recent years of slight declines in enrollment across grades K-12.
The Board projects FY25 enrollment to be 155,659 in grades K-12, which is 239 students less than the current school year’s enrollment of 155,420. The Board’s request adds a total of $53 million for strategic priority enhancements, new initiatives and elements to enhance or improve key priorities. In addition, the Board’s budget adds a net total increase of 268.7 full-time employees (FTE) above the approved FY24 budget level, for a requested FY25 total of 24,764.5 FTE.
The County Executive recommends an MCPS FY25 Operating Budget of more than $3.2 billion, which is an increase of more than $127 million, or 4 percent, over the approved FY24 funding level. The County Executive’s recommendation is $60 million less than the Board’s requested total budget. The Executive’s recommended County contribution is more than $2.1 billion, which is more than $106 million, or 5.4 percent, above the approved FY24 local contribution. This recommended funding level is more than $55 million less than the Board of Education requested for the County contribution.
At this meeting the committee will review the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, community schools, Title I schools, Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) and food services and review follow-up items. At a meeting held on April 29, the committee reviewed vacancies, lapses, recruitment, contractual services, special education, compensation, benefits and staff statistical profiles. At a meeting held on April 22, the committee reviewed accelerators, federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funding, dual enrollment, international enrollment and the Technology Modernization Capital Improvement Program. At a meeting held on April 10, the committee received an overview of the budget, including a fiscal summary of revenues and expenditures and review of the MOE level, fund balances and Racial Equity and Social Justice (RESJ) statements.
Review: The joint PHP and EC Committee will review the County’s Executive’s more than $221,866 recommended FY25 Operating Budget for the Historical Activities NDA, which represents an increase of $55,006, or 33 percent, from the approved FY24 Operating Budget. The recommendation includes two enhancements to provide one-time funding for the County’s 250th Anniversary Project. The recommendation also includes funds for the Unfinished Revolution Initiative, Black Resistance Oral History Initiative and a three percent inflationary adjustment.
Recreation - School-Based Programs and Out of School Time Programs
Review: The joint PHP and EC Committee will review the County Executive’s recommended FY25 Operating Budget for School-Based Programs and Out of School Time Programs. Out of School Time Programs provide students and families with engaging options for students on days when school is not in session. These activities support academic skills, physical and emotional wellness, art and digital learning skills. The committee receive an update on strategic planning update about these programs and discuss funding needed to Expand Excel Beyond the Bell (EBB) Middle School Program to two new sites and expand the RecZone program to Paint Branch High School.
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