REMINDER NOTICE: Government Forum is next Tuesday June 11, 2019- 

Commissioner…Code Home Rule…Charter…

June 11^th Forum to Explain the Difference

Westminster, MD, Wednesday, June 5, 2019 – The Carroll County Board of Commissioners (BOC) announces they will host a forum which will educate the county and its citizens on the three types of government available in Maryland. The forum will be held Tuesday, June 11, 2019 at 7:00 PM in Room K100 at Carroll Community College.

Three professionals knowledgeable in the forms of local government will give presentations followed by a question and answer session.

Members of the forum will be:

Leslie Knapp, Jr., Legal and Policy Counsel, Maryland Association of Counties (MACo)

• Advises and guides the association on legal, liability and regulatory matters, affecting both the association itself and its member counties
• Legislative Affairs Areas: environment, governmental liability and courts, parks and recreation, planning and zoning, and public information and ethics
• Liaison to affiliates including attorneys, environmental health, engineers, planners and recreation and parks

Robert S. McCord, MBA, J.D., Secretary of the Maryland Department of Planning

• Former Deputy Secretary/Acting Secretary of Planning
• Former Assistant Secretary of Operations and Community, Maryland Department of Planning
• Former Adjunct Professor/Faculty Advisor, University of Baltimore School of Law
• Former Special Assistant to the Harford County Executive
• Former Harford County Attorney

Victor Tervala, Esq., Chief Solicitor, Office of General Counsel

• Advises clients throughout Maryland on legal structures, forms and powers of county and municipal government, state-local relations, and the historical precedents that underlie these legal structures
• Serves as principal legal advisor on telecommunications and utility infrastructure
• Maryland Bar Association, State and Local Government Section (member of Governance Committee)
• Member of the Maryland Municipal Attorneys Association
• University of Maryland at Baltimore, J.D. with honors, 1989
• University of Maryland College Park, M.A., Government and Politics, 1980
• Tulane University, B.A., Political Science and International Relations, 1974

In January 2019, the commissioners chose to investigate and learn about code home rule and charter forms of government. As part of this education, the board decided to invite other county jurisdictions and the Maryland Association of Counties (MACo) to present information regarding transitioning from a commissioner form of government to either code home rule or charter government. This forum is the first part of the exploration expected to be followed by a forum of representatives of governments which have undergone transitions.

For interested citizens, the Maryland Association of Counties website provides a detailed comparison of the three types of government [link] as well as a chart of current structure for Maryland counties and Baltimore City [link].

The event will be live streamed and available for viewing after the session on the county meeting portal and YouTube channel. In addition, all meetings will be replayed on Comcast Channel 24.

CARROLL COUNTY 

The Americans with Disabilities Act applies to the Carroll County Government and its programs, services, activities, and facilities. Anyone requiring an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication or who has a complaint should contact The Department of Citizen Services, 410.386.3600 or 1.888.302.8978 or MD Relay 7-1-1/1.800.735.2258 or email ada@carrollcountymd.gov as soon as possible but no later than 72 hours before the scheduled event.