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Record of Proceedings

Charles County Board of Commissioners Meeting – September 29, 2026

County Commissioners & Boards — Tuesday, September 29, 2026
BodyCharles County, Maryland
SessionCounty Commissioners & Boards
DateTuesday, September 29, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:30:24

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:07

Charles County Government presents the Board of Commissioners.

Speaker 2

0:17

Good morning.

0:18

The September 29th, 2026, Charles County Board of Commissioners meeting is now called to order.

0:26

We will begin today's session with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Speaker 3

0:35

And

Speaker 4

0:35

to the

Speaker 3

0:36

Republic, which expands

Speaker 4

0:38

one nation under God, individual liberty and justice.

Speaker 5

0:44

Thank you, Commissioners.

0:46

We're going to begin session with a roll call.

0:48

Commissioner Bowling.

0:49

Present.

0:49

Commissioner Coast.

0:51

Commissioner Stewart.

0:52

Here.

0:52

Commissioner Patterson.

Speaker 1

0:55

Present.

Speaker 5

0:56

Commissioner Collins.

0:57

Here.

0:58

Thank you.

0:58

Commissioners, the first item on your agenda is an opportunity for Commissioner Comments.

1:07

Commissioners, if there's no comments, we'll move on to your next item on the agenda, which is approval of the minutes.

Speaker 2

1:14

Commissioners, we need a motion to approve the minutes from the September 22nd, 2026 meeting.

Speaker 4

1:23

So

Speaker 6

1:24

moved.

1:24

Second.

Speaker 2

1:25

It's been moved and properly seconded.

1:26

All in favor?

1:28

Opposed.

1:29

The ayes have it.

Speaker 5

1:30

Thank you.

1:31

The next item, Commissioner, is just an announcement that your next scheduled sessions will be on October 6th and 7th, 2026.

1:38

That now moves you into your approval items for today.

1:42

And under budget amendments and budget transfer.

1:44

The first one we have is an FY 2026 budget amendment increase number 1419.

1:51

The Board of Education received Maryland Energy Grant for the state portion of the FY 2026 construction funds.

Speaker 7

2:01

Good morning, Commissioners.

2:02

Carol, I'm going to ask if we can approve these BTRs together because they go together.

2:08

They're both for the grants, if that's okay.

2:11

One is for the grant, and then the other is for the match.

2:14

So they kind of both go together.

2:15

So we need them both approved.

Speaker 5

2:17

So you're looking for one approval or just going to do two separate motions.

Speaker 7

2:22

I think we only need one motion for both.

2:31

All right.

2:31

So the first one is BTR number 1419 in the amount of $750,000.

2:38

This is for a Board of Education Capital Improvement Project.

2:42

And then an amendment is needed due to the Board of Education receiving a Maryland Energy Grant Award, the state of mail and contributed funds to the Mattawoman Middle School Controls Upgrade Project.

2:53

This amendment is to account for the state portion of the 20 fiscal year 26 construction funds received for this project.

3:01

And then number 1420 is also for the same project for 250,000.

3:09

And this is the local share of the grant that is required for the project.

3:14

And this funding is reallocating funds from the construction line of the fiscal year 25, various maintenance projects to the construction line

Unassigned speaker

3:22

of

Speaker 7

3:22

the Matterwoman Middle School Controls Upgrade Project, and there is funding available in that project to cover this.

3:29

So this is the match portion to the 750,000 for a total of a million dollars towards this project between the state and local pieces.

Speaker 2

3:46

So you said try to put this in one motion.

3:51

Okay.

4:02

Received Maryland Energy Grant Awards State State portion for construct FY 2026 construction funds.

4:15

Also in this motion, we're seeking approval for budget transfer request number 1420, local share of the Maryland Energy Administration grant for the Matterwoman Middle School Controls Upgrade Project.

Unassigned speaker

4:31

So

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural███████████████15%
Public Safety███████████████15%
Economic Development███████████████15%
Personnel Matters█████████9%
Fiscal Sustainability███████7%
Homeowners Association Dispute Resolution███████7%
Environmental Protection██████6%
Technology and Innovation██████6%
Transportation Safety██████6%
Summary of Proceedings

Charles County Board of Commissioners Meeting – September 29, 2026

The Charles County Board of Commissioners convened on September 29, 2026, for a morning session that included approval of consent items, adoption of a cannabis moratorium, and an extensive work session on the 2027 state legislative package. Commissioners voted on dozens of proposed bills, setting the county’s advocacy priorities, and later moved into closed session to discuss a potential property acquisition.

Consent Calendar

  • Approved the minutes of the September 22, 2026 meeting.
  • Approved budget transfer requests BTR 1419 ($750,000 state grant) and BTR 1420 ($250,000 local match) for the Mattawoman Middle School Controls Upgrade Project, totalling $1 million.
  • Renewed the mutual aid agreement between the Charles County Sheriff’s Office and the St. Mary’s and Calvert County Sheriff’s Offices. The Sheriff’s Office noted it is reviewing all MOUs for currency.
  • Adopted Resolution 2026-13 establishing a one-year temporary moratorium on large-scale cannabis growing in all zones except general industrial and heavy industrial, consistent with the Maryland Cannabis Act (personal use exemptions remain). An amendment corrected a double‑negative drafting error.

Work Session: 2027 State Legislative Proposals

Commissioners reviewed 30 proposals and took the following actions:

  • Proposal 1 (Stormwater easement documentation): Directed staff to explore local implementation.
  • Proposal 2 (Federal tax incentives for common‑ownership communities): Supported; to be forwarded to the federal delegation.
  • Proposal 3 (Commercial growth dividend program): Not included in the package; instead, the board directed staff to send a letter to the state’s data‑center task force requesting authority for counties to tax data centers differently.
  • Proposal 4 (Smart Growth & Fiscal Accountability Study): To be handled locally.
  • Proposal 5 (Inspector General authority over school systems): Supported as Charles County‑specific legislation.
  • Proposal 6 (Orphans court judge law‑degree requirement): More information requested; no vote taken.
  • Proposal 7 (Loitering ordinance): Supported for commercial public spaces and a curfew component; staff to draft based on Prince George’s County model.
  • Proposal 11 (Bi‑county transportation priority zone): Supported.
  • Proposal 12 (Homeowner resilience improvements): Not supported; existing programs deemed sufficient.
  • Proposal 13 (Commuter ferry): Not supported; a feasibility study is already planned at the Council of Governments.
  • Proposal 14 (Aging‑in‑place program): Not supported legislatively, but staff will evaluate internal program needs.
  • Proposal 15 (Law‑enforcement CDL exemption for Sheriff’s Office): Approved 3–2 (Commissioners Bowling and Patterson opposed; Coates, Stewart, Collins in favor).
  • Proposal 16 (Sheriff’s Office other legislation): Supported.
  • Proposal 17 (Add Resilience Authority to Tort Claims Act): Supported; the Industrial Development Authority was also added at staff’s suggestion.
  • Proposal 18 (HOA Dispute Resolution Board for condominiums): Supported.
  • Proposal 19 (Common‑ownership community registry and fee): Supported.
  • Proposal 20 (Recreation amenity fee enabling legislation): Approved 3–2 (Commissioners Bowling and Patterson opposed; Coates, Stewart, Collins in favor).
  • Proposal 21 (Native biodiversity threshold for commercial properties): Staff to study and report back on feasibility, appropriate percentage, and timeline.
  • Proposals 22-26 (Data‑center bans and moratoria): None supported; the board will instead rely on current zoning that prohibits data centers and will participate in a local task force, incorporating a request from Mr. Dixon to study infrasound effects.
  • Proposal 27 (Term limits for county commissioners – codify locally): Approved 3–2 (Commissioners Bowling and Stewart opposed; Coates, Patterson, Collins in favor).
  • Proposal 28 (Shared wastewater systems for accessory dwelling units): Supported.
  • Proposal 29 (Remove income restriction for volunteer emergency responders tax credit): Approved 4–1 (Commissioner Coates opposed).
  • Proposal 30 (Term limits for Maryland General Assembly members): Motion failed for lack of a second.

Key Outcomes

  • The board finalized its legislative package for submission to the Charles County delegation, including the specific proposals noted above as approved.
  • Commissioners authorized the County Administrator to send a letter to the data‑center task force regarding local taxing authority.
  • Staff will bring back additional research on orphans court eligibility, native biodiversity thresholds, and a draft loitering ordinance for commercial spaces.
  • Following the work session, the board voted unanimously to enter closed session under General Provisions Article §3‑305(b)(7) to discuss a potential property acquisition, with the intent to reconvene in open session at 3:00 PM.

Meeting Transcript

Charles County Government presents the Board of Commissioners. Good morning. The September 29th, 2026, Charles County Board of Commissioners meeting is now called to order. We will begin today's session with the Pledge of Allegiance. And to the Republic, which expands one nation under God, individual liberty and justice. Thank you, Commissioners. We're going to begin session with a roll call. Commissioner Bowling. Present. Commissioner Coast. Commissioner Stewart. Here. Commissioner Patterson. Present. Commissioner Collins. Here. Thank you. Commissioners, the first item on your agenda is an opportunity for Commissioner Comments. Commissioners, if there's no comments, we'll move on to your next item on the agenda, which is approval of the minutes. Commissioners, we need a motion to approve the minutes from the September 22nd, 2026 meeting. So moved. Second. It's been moved and properly seconded. All in favor? Opposed. The ayes have it. Thank you. The next item, Commissioner, is just an announcement that your next scheduled sessions will be on October 6th and 7th, 2026. That now moves you into your approval items for today. And under budget amendments and budget transfer. The first one we have is an FY 2026 budget amendment increase number 1419. The Board of Education received Maryland Energy Grant for the state portion of the FY 2026 construction funds. Good morning, Commissioners. Carol, I'm going to ask if we can approve these BTRs together because they go together. They're both for the grants, if that's okay. One is for the grant, and then the other is for the match. So they kind of both go together. So we need them both approved. So you're looking for one approval or just going to do two separate motions. I think we only need one motion for both. All right. So the first one is BTR number 1419 in the amount of $750,000. This is for a Board of Education Capital Improvement Project. And then an amendment is needed due to the Board of Education receiving a Maryland Energy Grant Award, the state of mail and contributed funds to the Mattawoman Middle School Controls Upgrade Project. This amendment is to account for the state portion of the 20 fiscal year 26 construction funds received for this project. And then number 1420 is also for the same project for 250,000.

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