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Record of Proceedings

Howard County Council Legislative Session: September 8, 2026

County Council & Boards — Tuesday, September 8, 2026
BodyHoward County, Maryland
SessionCounty Council & Boards
DateTuesday, September 8, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 19:28

Original source
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0:00

All right.

0:01

Good evening, everyone.

0:02

This is a council September legislative session in which we introduce new legislation and give final consideration to legislation previously introduced and heard.

0:11

This legislative session is being conducted as a hybrid meeting, which is available in person and virtual via WebEx.

0:18

It is also available to the public through live stream on the Howard County Council website and broadcast on channels 44 and 1071.

0:26

The council will hold a hybrid public hearing on Tuesday, September 22nd at 7 p.m.

0:30

on the legislation introduced this evening.

0:33

Testimony can be given in person or virtually via WebEx.

0:36

Written testimony can be sent to Council Mail at Howard County MD.gov.

0:41

You may sign up in advance to the Council's website or you may sign up in person in front of the Banneker room via a laptop on Tuesday, September 22nd, prior to the start of the public hearing.

0:53

When signing up to testify, you will be asked if you are a student in Grace K through 12 so that you can be called to testify early during the public hearing and whether your testimony will be provided in person or virtual via WebEx.

1:06

If you select virtual, you will be provided instructions for logging into the WebEx session.

1:12

If needed, the council will hold a work session on new legislation on Monday, September 28th at 10 a.m.

1:18

in the Seaburning Grave Room.

1:19

Public participation for these meetings will be available virtually via WebEx and view live stream through the County Council website.

1:27

At this time, I'm going to do a roll call for the council members.

1:30

Ms.

1:30

Rigby.

1:31

Here.

1:31

Miss Young?

1:32

Here.

1:33

Miss Walsh?

1:34

Here.

1:34

Mr.

1:35

Youngman.

1:36

Here.

1:36

And I am Opal Jones.

1:38

We will now recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

1:52

Underground.

1:53

Indivisible.

1:54

Liberty Justice Burrell.

2:02

Okay.

2:02

Moving on to our agenda.

2:04

We will begin today's session with the approval of the Journal of Minutes.

2:08

I move to approve the journal of the legislative session, July 29, 2026.

2:13

Second.

2:14

Ms.

2:14

Harry, could you please call the vote?

2:16

Chair Jones?

2:17

Yes.

2:18

Ms.

2:18

Young?

2:19

Yes.

2:20

Ms.

2:20

Rigby.

2:21

Yes.

2:22

Ms.

2:22

Walsh.

2:23

Yes.

2:23

Mr.

2:23

Youngman.

2:24

Yes.

2:25

The motion to approve the journal from the legislative session on July 29, 2026 passes.

2:31

Will the administrator please read the legislation for introduction?

2:35

The following legislation is introduced by the chairperson at the request of the county executive unless otherwise noted.

2:41

Council Resolution 124, 2026.

2:44

Resolution confirming the appointment of Larry Daniel Brett to the Opioid Restitution Fund Commission.

2:49

Council Resolution 125, 2026.

2:52

Resolution confirming the appointment of Kim M.

2:55

Lightfoot to the Board of Social Services.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural██████████████████████████26%
Personnel Matters███████████████████████23%
Budget Equity Analysis██████████████14%
Arts And Culture██████████████14%
Public Safety█████████████13%
Data Center Development██████████10%
Summary of Proceedings

Howard County Council Legislative Session: September 8, 2026

The Howard County Council held a hybrid legislative session on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. The meeting included the introduction of new legislation and final consideration of previously tabled appointments and reappointments. The Council approved the journal from the July 29, 2026 session and unanimously confirmed multiple board and commission appointments.

Approval of Journal

  • The Council unanimously approved the journal of the legislative session from July 29, 2026 (vote: 5-0).

Introduction of Legislation

  • The following legislation was introduced by the Chairperson at the request of the County Executive (unless otherwise noted) and read into the record. No discussion or vote was taken on these items:
    • Appointments (CR124–CR154): Numerous appointments to boards and commissions including the Opioid Restitution Fund Commission, Board of Social Services, Interfaith Advisory Commission, Commission on Disabilities, Human Rights Commission, SMART Data Center Task Force, and Inspector General Advisory Board. Appointments from councilmembers for the SMART Data Center Task Force were also introduced.
    • Reappointments (CR155–CR158): Reappointments to the Multimodal Transportation Board, Agricultural Preservation Board.
    • Financial Ordinances (CB49–CB53): Authorizations for bond issuances ($670,397 for water infrastructure, $150M public improvement and $50M metropolitan district bonds, refunding bonds), and property tax credits for child care providers and retired public safety officers.
    • General Resolutions (CR159–CR162): Supporting the Howard County Arts & Culture Plan, approving BikeHoward 2026, establishing a Surplus School Use Committee, and changing a legislative session date.
    • Legislation from Councilmembers:
      • CB58-2026 (introduced by Deb Jung): Renaming code sections and establishing a centralized grants application platform.
      • CB59-2026 (introduced by David Yungmann): Temporarily prohibiting approvals for solar energy facilities in response to state law HB1036.

Final Consideration – Tabled Appointments and Reappointments

  • The Council unanimously voted to remove Council Resolutions 108–119 from the table and then approved them unanimously (vote: 5-0). These resolutions confirmed the following appointments and reappointments:
    • Appointments: Kelsey E. Ritter (Environmental Sustainability Board), Levita Y. Lowe and Faith Matranga (Human Rights Commission), Brent K. Jones (Commission on Disabilities), Omar J. Jones IV (Commission for Veterans and Military Families), Katharine T. Hemady (Board of Social Services).
    • Reappointments: Antonia B. Watts (Board of Library Trustees), Mason Godsey (Planning Board), Dr. M. Shafeeq Ahmed (Economic Development Authority), Roberta Kelly (Cemetery Preservation Advisory Board), James Bell (Advisory Board on Consumer Protection), William Phillip Webster (Environmental Sustainability Board).

Key Outcomes

  • The Council approved the journal of the previous session.
  • The Council introduced 36 new legislative items (resolutions, ordinances, and bills) for future public hearing and action.
  • The Council unanimously confirmed 12 appointments and reappointments to various county boards and commissions.
  • The meeting adjourned after the final consideration.

Meeting Transcript

All right. Good evening, everyone. This is a council September legislative session in which we introduce new legislation and give final consideration to legislation previously introduced and heard. This legislative session is being conducted as a hybrid meeting, which is available in person and virtual via WebEx. It is also available to the public through live stream on the Howard County Council website and broadcast on channels 44 and 1071. The council will hold a hybrid public hearing on Tuesday, September 22nd at 7 p.m. on the legislation introduced this evening. Testimony can be given in person or virtually via WebEx. Written testimony can be sent to Council Mail at Howard County MD.gov. You may sign up in advance to the Council's website or you may sign up in person in front of the Banneker room via a laptop on Tuesday, September 22nd, prior to the start of the public hearing. When signing up to testify, you will be asked if you are a student in Grace K through 12 so that you can be called to testify early during the public hearing and whether your testimony will be provided in person or virtual via WebEx. If you select virtual, you will be provided instructions for logging into the WebEx session. If needed, the council will hold a work session on new legislation on Monday, September 28th at 10 a.m. in the Seaburning Grave Room. Public participation for these meetings will be available virtually via WebEx and view live stream through the County Council website. At this time, I'm going to do a roll call for the council members. Ms. Rigby. Here. Miss Young? Here. Miss Walsh? Here. Mr. Youngman. Here. And I am Opal Jones. We will now recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Underground. Indivisible. Liberty Justice Burrell. Okay. Moving on to our agenda. We will begin today's session with the approval of the Journal of Minutes. I move to approve the journal of the legislative session, July 29, 2026. Second. Ms. Harry, could you please call the vote? Chair Jones? Yes. Ms. Young? Yes. Ms. Rigby. Yes. Ms. Walsh. Yes. Mr.

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