Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.
On October 5, 2026, the Howard County Council held a hybrid legislative session beginning at 7:00 PM. The meeting included introduction of new legislation, final consideration of previously introduced items, and several votes on appointments, bonds, and policy bills. Key debates centered on a bill to designate the Inspector General as a custodian of public records (CB69-2026), amendments to the public safety officer tax credit (CB53-2026), and motions to table grant reform (CB58-2026) and solar facility legislation (CB59-2026).
This webinar is being recorded and summarized. Good evening, everyone. This is the council's October 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 Monday, October 19th 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 through the Council's website, or you may sign up in person in front of the Banneker room via a laptop on Monday, October 19th, prior to the start of the public hearing. When signing up to testify, you will be asked if you are a student in grades 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, October 26th at 10 a.m. in the C Vernon Grave Room. Public participation for these meetings will be available virtually via WebEx and viewed live streamed through the County Council's website. At this time, I'm going to do a roll call for the Council members. Ms. Rigby. Here. Ms. Young. Here. Ms. Walsh? Here. Mr. Youngman? Here. And I am Opal Jones. We will now recite the Pledge of Allegiance. Allegiance to the United States of America. Undergard invisible. Liberty and Justice for all. We have asked the Council administrator 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 dais before, during, or after 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. Constituents are encouraged to reach out to the 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 cooperation in helping us maintain a safe, orderly, and efficient meeting environment. Moving on to our agenda, we will begin today's session with the approval of journals and minutes of meetings. I move to approve the journal of legislative session September 8th.