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Dear Friend,
I want to share the latest Council updates and news with you.
As you know, children ages five to 11 are now eligible for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. This is a huge relief for many parents with kids in this age group, including myself. My two boys have already received their first dose at their elementary school. And we learned last week that 42% of Marylanders in this age group who have been vaccinated are from Montgomery County -- that’s a testament to our residents for doing their part to keep themselves and our community protected against COVID-19. Let’s keep up that momentum -- you can make an appointment for your child at a county-clinic here.
The Council continues working to make Montgomery County a more healthy, vibrant, and safe place for everyone who calls it home. We are committed to ensuring our residents and businesses have the resources and support they need. If you or someone you know needs assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to my office.
If you haven’t already, please connect with me on Facebook and Twitter for the latest updates and news.
As always, stay safe and stay in close touch.
Sincerely,
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 Tom Hucker
President
Montgomery County Council
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New Climate Legislation Seeks To Reduce County’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Four years after declaring a climate emergency, Montgomery County is far behind in efforts to reach our climate goals. It's time for us to get serious. We need a consistent investment to tackle carbon pollution from aging buildings.
On Tuesday, Councilmember Andrew Friedson and I formally introduced major climate legislation that will significantly reduce our County’s greenhouse gas emissions by helping property owners make energy efficiency improvements to buildings.
I was proud to be joined by climate advocates and industry leaders who shared support for the legislation at a press conference on Monday. If you missed it, you can watch the announcement here.
Bill 44-21, Montgomery County Green Bank - Funding - Fuel-Energy Tax Revenue, sets forth a way for Montgomery County to leverage substantial private sector investment in support of the County’s clean energy and climate mitigation goals by dedicating 10 percent of the County Energy Tax revenues, nearly $20 million annually, to the Montgomery County Green Bank.
This bill allows the Green Bank to invest millions to green our infrastructure and provide upfront capital for property owners to make critical energy efficiency improvements. This sparks a real and vigorous effort to make retrofits to older buildings across the County. And it uses our limited public dollars to leverage private funds to create thousands of good jobs retrofitting our aging buildings. Thanks to Council Vice President Gabe Albornoz and Councilmembers Will Jawando, Sidney Katz, Nancy Navarro, Craig Rice and Hans Riemer for cosponsoring this critical legislation. Learn more about the bill and watch highlights here.
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Council Passes Bills to Improve Transparency in Policing
The Council recently voted to pass Bill 45-20, which will enhance transparency and accountability within the Montgomery County Police Department and help restore public trust. The bill, which I am a proud lead sponsor of, will improve demographic data collection of residents during police stops and create publicly available datasets related to the race, ethnicity, gender and other voluntarily provided information about residents involved in policing interactions. We can’t improve policing without better data collection and public access to that data. So this bill aims to address these gaps in data collection and reporting and improve transparency in policing in Montgomery County. Learn more about the bill.
Last week, we passed Bill 18-21, which will improve the review process and reporting of police body camera footage for serious incidents, like use of force, officer-involved shootings or deaths and situations involving minors.
I introduced this bill back in May after information came to light that two MCPD officers abused a 5-year old child who wandered off campus at East Silver Spring Elementary School in my district back in January 2020. The incident was not reported quickly to the chief, and once it was, the incident was neither reported to the County Executive, the County Council nor the State’s Attorney. Bill 18-21 will increase transparency in the review of body-worn camera footage and help rebuild public trust and strengthen community-police relations. Learn more here.
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Residents Share Support for Prevailing Wage Bill
The Council recently held a public hearing on Bill 35-21, which would update our existing Prevailing Wage law to align it with changes in state law and recent laws passed by Baltimore County and Anne Arundel County. By helping our local workers and local contractors compete for our own public construction projects, this bill:
- Creates more middle class jobs with benefits in Montgomery County;
- Reduces demand on our social services, allowing us to target our finite safety net service dollars for families most in need;
- Incentivizes excellent apprenticeship training, creating pathways to middle-class careers with benefits for our young people; and
- Expands workforce and economic opportunities for young adults including residents re-entering the workforce.
I played a minor role helping then-Councilmember Valerie Ervin and advocates pass the original bill back in 2008. This bill includes provisions that require best efforts to be made to meet local hiring goals in capital improvement contracts. It will also put a priority on hiring local workers, so students from our own public schools will be put to work building the next generation of schools and other public buildings and roads. Hear from the speakers who testified in support of the bill. A Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee work session is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 2 at 9:30 a.m.
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WAMU: The Politics Hour with Kojo Nnamdi
The Montgomery County Council passed a new bill that adds requirements for when and how police body-camera footage is investigated. Council President Tom Hucker (D-District 5) joins to discuss. Plus: the county’s new general plan and the status of the county’s mask mandate.
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WUSA9: Here's how the infrastructure plan will impact the DC metro area
"Instead of just focusing on road widening, we need sustainable and multi-generational improvements in transit, including federal investment in our bus rapid transit network," he said. "Getting that federal funding for those lines would unlock tens of millions in economic development, create lots of sustainable jobs and help people get out of their cars and have an option to get to work without filling up highways.”
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County Regresses to Substantial Transmission
The County's mask mandate is set to resume at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 20. Dr. James Bridgers, acting County health officer, notified the Montgomery County Council Tuesday that the County has returned to seven consecutive days of substantial COVID-19 transmission, which triggers the indoor mask mandate to return. The indoor mask mandate will resume on Saturday, Nov. 20 at 12:01 a.m. to provide businesses with four-days notice. According to the Board of Health regulation, the mask mandate will lift when the County reaches seven consecutive days of moderate COVID-19 transmission or lower and the regulation will terminate when 85 percent of the County’s total population is fully vaccinated. Learn more.
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Second Public Hearing on Redistricting
The Council's second public hearing on the proposed redistricting map and Bill 41-21, Elections – Council Districts – Boundaries, will be held tonight at 7 p.m. The public hearing will be broadcast on CCM and streamed live on the Council's Facebook and YouTube pages.
Those who were not able to join the public hearings are encouraged to submit written, audio or video testimony on the Council's web page here. Written testimony can also be mailed to the Council. Learn more.
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Listening Session on Thrive 2050
The Montgomery County Council will hold a community listening session to hear from residents about Thrive Montgomery 2050. It will be hosted virtually via Zoom on Nov. 30, 2021, starting at 7 p.m. The Council encourages both those who have not heard of the plan before and those who have been following the plan closely to review the draft plan and pre-register to speak at the session. If you would like to participate in the listening session, please pre-register no later than Nov. 28, 2021 at 5 p.m. at https://tinyurl.com/Thrive2050ListeningSession. Members of the public also are welcome to submit written comments about the draft plan. Learn more.
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COVID-19 Vaccinations
We urge all residents who haven’t received their COVID-19 vaccines to make their first-dose appointments at County clinics. Clinics, pharmacies and pediatric offices are now vaccinating children ages five to 11. Booster shots are also available for eligible groups.
Clinic dates, times, and vaccine types are all listed on the County website. The vaccination schedule is updated daily. Residents can also walk into a County-run vaccine clinic without an appointment.
If you are a Montgomery County resident with disabilities and/or over the age of 65, there are free taxi rides available to and from COVID-19 testing and vaccination clinics: https://tinyurl.com/5b6nj3v2. To schedule a trip, call Connect-A-Ride at 301-738-3252 and get your free taxi code.
If you need help making an appointment, email c19vaccination@montgomerycountymd.gov or call 240-777-2982.
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Flu Season
With the flu season upon us, we urge all residents to get their flu shots as soon as possible to protect themselves. Flu symptoms are very similar to COVID-19 symptoms, so please make sure to get tested for COVID-19 if you are unsure. Learn more about the County’s flu vaccination campaign to find locations where you can get your flu shot.
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Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Montgomery County Thanksgiving Parade returns to Silver Spring, Saturday, Nov. 20 at 10 a.m. Families and groups will be able to watch the parade following social distancing protocols. Volunteers of all ages are needed, especially adults given the lower number of student volunteers this year. Please consider signing up to help out on the day of the parade: https://tinyurl.com/37449jcx.
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