At 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, the Howard County Council held a hybrid legislative public hearing to receive testimony on appointments and Council Bill 58 (CB58-2026). Chair Opel Jones presided, with Councilmembers Christiana Rigby, Deb Jung, Liz Walsh, and David Yungmann present. The chair announced that several other agenda items would be moved to the following day (September 23).
The council heard testimony from numerous appointees to various boards and commissions. Most spoke briefly in support of their own nominations. A notable exception occurred when Councilmember Liz Walsh questioned Rabbi Craig Axler (nominee to the Interfaith Advisory Commission) about his past conduct regarding interfaith dialogue after October 7, 2023, and Walsh stated she would not support his nomination. Rabbi Axler denied having any role in selecting commission membership and affirmed his commitment to honest dialogue. Other appointees included Larry Bratt (Opioid Restitution Fund Commission), Kim Lightfoot (Board of Social Services), Erica Davis (Housing Commission), Mustafa Akpinar, Rabbi Yanky Baron, Yolanda Bethea, Erica Cole, Ian Collier, Naresh Chandra Das, Kalpana Panigrahi, Emily Robertson, Alexander Ross, Jodi Saunders, Hamza Zgidou, Teresa Murbach (Commission on Disabilities), and several members of the SMART Data Center Task Force (Jennifer Jones, Hye Yeong Kwon, David Norfolk Jr., Jack Powell, Greg Zudock, Aftab Ahmed, Doug Siglin, Daniel Sweeney) . Josiah Wheeler (student) testified for his appointment to the Human Rights Commission. Reappointments to the Multimodal Transportation Board and Agricultural Preservation Board were also noted.
Councilmember Deb Jung introduced CB58 , explaining it aimed to standardize county grant making, increase transparency, and require a 25% match for construction grants, among other provisions. She acknowledged concerns from nonprofits and offered to meet for amendments. A large number of community members and nonprofit representatives testified, with the majority opposing the bill:
Opponents argued the bill would create excessive administrative burdens, especially for small nonprofits; divert resources from direct services; risk client privacy through a public database; stifle innovation with a two-year experience requirement; and duplicate existing oversight. Speakers included Jessamine Duval (Bridges to Housing Stability), Lois Meek (Association of Community Services), Christy Page (Rebuilding Together Howard County), Lisa Markowitz (People's Voice Columbia), Jackie Ng (Housing Affordability Coalition), Linda Lampert Leslie (Columbia Democratic Club), Don Pop (individual), Jessica Nichols (individual), Seema Agarwal (individual), Cindy LaFollette (individual), Melissa Curtin (Community Foundation of Howard County), and others. Several cited the Office of Community Partnerships' current understaffing and the risk to vulnerable residents.
Supporters argued the bill is necessary for accountability and taxpayer protection, especially after concerns about a $25 million grant to Columbia Community Concepts for “The Source” project. They emphasized the need for clear deliverables, repayment provisions, and public transparency. Supporters included Stu Cohn (Howard County Taxpayers Association), Lisa Krause (individual), Shamica Preston (individual), Angela Bruce (individual), Andrea Levinson (individual), Ryan Powers (individual), Drew Roth (individual), Alan Schneider (individual), and Alan Steiner (individual). Several asked the council to work with stakeholders to refine the bill rather than reject it entirely.
Deb Jung stated she was open to amendments and scheduled two meetings (September 23 evening and September 25 morning) to discuss changes with nonprofits. Councilmember Yungmann noted the bill primarily targets construction grants and supported a framework to protect the public fisc. No other councilmembers made substantive remarks on CB58 during the hearing.
All right. Good evening, everyone. This is the Council's September legislative public hearing in which we will hear testimony for legislation introduced on September 8th. This evening is a hybrid meeting which is being conducted in person and via WebEx Teleconference. It is also available to the public through live stream on the County Council website and broadcast on Channel 44 and 1071. Sign up to testify on legislation that is a subject of this public hearing was done online and was available in person prior to the start of this session. The cutoff for testimony sign up was at 7 p.m. this evening. If needed, the council will hold a work session on Monday, September 28th at 10 a.m. in the C. Vernon Gray Room. Council members, please provide agenda items for the work session to our council administrator no later than 9 a.m. on tomorrow, Wednesday, September 23rd. A legislative session for final consideration of certain legislation that is the subject of this public hearing will be held on Monday, October 5th at 7 p.m. in the Banneker Room. Public participation for these meetings will be available in person, virtually via WebEx and viewed live streamed through the County Council website. This time I'm going to do a roll call of 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. Pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, individual liberty and justice for all. We have asked the council administrative to enforce a public participation guideline to help the council and support staff remain focused on the topics of the meeting. Going forward, attendees will not be allowed to approach the horseshoe area or the dais before, during, or after the council meetings. As has been the practice, when council members are available for public interaction, the individual council member will enter the public seating area to engage in conversation, as you saw many of us do today. Constituents are encouraged to reach out to their council representative during normal business hours to schedule a convenient time to discuss any issues or concerns. If you have immediate questions regarding the topics of this meeting, please reach out to the designated staff member seated at the table in the back of the room. For questions not related to this meeting, please contact the council office during normal business hours at 410-313-2001. We appreciate your comp your cooperation in helping us maintain a safe, orderly, and efficient meeting environment. We will now proceed with our regular September legislative public hearing. If there are any students who will be testifying this evening, for those in person, please come up to the front row so we will call you up to testify. Those virtually, please contact Isaiah Anderson by raising your hand on the WebEx or send him an email to Ianderson at Howard County MD.gov. Please note that while we are receiving testimony this evening, we continue to receive written comments, which will be fully considered by the council prior to taking action. Anyone who signed up to testify at this hearing will be called to testify. When you are called upon to testify, please state your name and the city or town of your home address. Representatives from nonprofit organizations will have up to five minutes to testify. Individuals and other organizations have up to three minutes to testify. Individuals who have indicated that they are testifying through an interpreter may be allowed a total of five minutes with interpreter translation. You may not yield your time to another speaker. You will be notified at the 30-second mark to begin wrapping up by the council administrator, and then you will be notified when your time to speak is up. You must conclude when your time is up.