Montgomery County Public Safety Committee FY27 Budget Work Session – April 29, 2026

The Montgomery County Council Public Safety (PS) Committee met in the Council Hearing Room (3CHR) on April 29, 2026, at 1:30 p.m. Committee members were Chair Sidney Katz, Councilmember Dawn Luedtke, and Councilmember Kristin Mink. The work session covered the FY27 Operating Budget and the FY27-32 Capital Improvements Program (CIP) for the Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, the Office of Consumer Protection, Fire and Rescue Services, and the proposed FY27 Memorandum of Agreement with the Montgomery County Volunteer Fire-Rescue Association.

Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (OEMHS)

• The executive recommended a FY27 operating increase of $1,758,165, bringing the OEMHS recommended budget to about $6.8 million. The department received an Operating Budget Equity Tool score of 4, noted as demonstrating emerging commitment to racial equity and social justice.
• The committee reviewed three items proposed for the reconciliation list: $800,000 to move the Everbridge Alert System funding from federal grant funds to general fund reserves; $425,000 to replace expiring public-access trauma care kits and related emergency response equipment; and $93,274 to convert a grant-funded fiscal and administrative specialist position into a permanent county position.
• Chair Katz strongly supported the Everbridge funding, saying it was a life-saving priority and one of the most important items on the reconciliation list. The committee voted 3-0 on each of the three reconciliation items.
• Other recommended operating adjustments included a technical correction of about $420,000 for four FTEs, a $279,861 enhancement tied to state homeland security grant funding, and a $120,000 reduction related to a grant-funded police position.

Public Safety Joint Operations Center CIP dispute

• The committee reviewed the county executive’s April 21, 2026 CIP amendment to the previously approved Public Safety Joint Operations Center project. In February 2026, the Council had appropriated $2.4 million for the project, which was expected to be operational within 90 days.
• The executive recommended reducing the project scope to $848,000 for cabling and electrical infrastructure only and implementing the project through a phased approach, citing affordability concerns and operating budget pressures.
• OEMHS officials said grant funding, including funding secured through Congressman Raskin’s office, had paid for about $1.14 million in equipment and operational setup, but grant funds could not be used for capital projects such as inside-walls hardwiring and radio infrastructure. The Fire Rescue director stated the real technology and worker-safety needs were closer to $1.1 million, including cabling, radio infrastructure, radios, and electrical upgrades.
• Councilmember Luedtke objected to the executive making FY26 funds reappear in the FY27 budget process, saying the council had already approved the work. Councilmember Mink added that she did not want the council to make operational decisions under the guise of budget decisions. OMB explained that accepting the reduced $848,000 scope would free about $1.2 million in cash and roughly $371,000 in Green Bay for FY27 budget needs.
• At the end of the discussion, the committee directed the legislative analyst and OMB to finalize the exact amount and vote before full Council considerations; the chair concluded the OEMHS package by noting 3-0 approval.

Office of Consumer Protection (OCP)

• The recommended FY27 OCP budget was an increase of about $97,000, or 3%, almost entirely for compensation adjustments. The department earned an OBET score of 10 for proactive and strategic work in child equity.
• The budget was described as a “same services” budget, with about $10,000 being removed for one-time FY26 items for two new positions tied to Bill 6-25.
• The committee adjourned to acknowledge OCP’s new volunteer outreach and prevention model and approved the budget 3-0.

Fire and Rescue Services

• The executive recommended a total FY27 Fire and Rescue budget of about $312 million, an increase of about $1.6 million, or 0.5%. The budget included no new programmatic staffing enhancements. The department scored the equitable commitment score of 6.
• The Fire and Rescue department is required to fill about 315 staffing positions across the county each day, handled about 143,000 emergency calls in the prior year, and about 78% of those calls were emergency medical services calls.
• FY26 overtime expenses were already about $7 million over budget, and the department expected an FY26 supplemental request of $11.7 million. The department showed recurring overtime overruns, including $15 million over budget in FY25. The table shown showed the top 20 overtime earners in calendar 2025, including one firefighter with about $315,000 in overtime and total pay of about $472,000 for the year.
• The staff noted a newly passed state law, Senate Bill 445 and its cross-file House Bill 532, requiring overtime for hours over 168 hours in a 28-day work period. The law takes effect October 1, 2028; for Montgomery County’s typical 48-hours schedules, the department estimated the impact at about $10.6 million in FY26 money.
• The department has operated the Fire Science and Rescue Cadet and EMT programs with MCPS, the Girls Wired timing of the summer fire camp, and has begun implementing recommendations from the National Academy of Public Administration report on staffing.

Proposed staff and budget changes

• The committee considered a proposal to remove nine career FTEs from aerial tower at Hillendale Station, saving about $1.8 million. The apparatus would remain staffed call data showed about 1,466 calls in calendar 2025, and mutual aid from nearby aerial units would be relied upon, including Tower 18 in Glenmont, Tower 16 in Shade Four Corners, and Tower 15 in Burtonsville. Councilmember Luedtke said East Precinct County had historically carried the brunt profession when cuts were made and asked that the item be placed on the reconciliation list. The committee voted 3-0 to keep the Hillendale tower reduction on the reconciliation list.
• The committee also reviewed the proposed removal of six career staff from Rescue Squad 717 in Laytonsville and the transfer of those positions to convert the day-work EMS transport unit Medic 732 to the 24-hour operation. Rescue Squad 717 had about 400 calls in calendar 2025; Medic help would be moved to Station 32 near Adventist Shady Grove Hospital, which had more than 15,000 calls in 2025 while Medic 732 had only about 1,200 calls as a day-work unit. The change was presented as service-neutral and was described by the fire chief as able to be made under the department’s operational authority. The committee voted 3-0 to combine the Laytonsville and Medic 732 changes into a single reconciliation item, while clarifying that the council was not approving or rejecting the underlying operational shifts.
• Additional reviewed budget changes included a $1.3 million risk management adjustment, an insurance premium increase based on FY26 premiums of about $4.1 million, $240,000 for a Bound Tree EMS medical supplies contract, $150,000 for robot software upgrades, $130,000 for PPE cleaning contract escalation from $25.98 to $35.00 per item, $91,000 for lost COG hazmat support, $56,000 for the medical director vendor contract, expansion of the medical services and training academy fire simulators, and $239,000 for LOSAP amendments tied to the upcoming volunteer fire/rescue agreement.
• The committee approved the draft Fire and Rescue budget resolution language for EMS fee and ESPP revenue distribution and the two CIP amendments, including the renaming of the White Flint Fire Station to the North Bethesda Fire Station and an apparatus replacement project funding switch.
• The overall Fire and Rescue budget was reported as approved 3-0.

Memorandum of Agreement with the Montgomery County Volunteer Fire-Rescue Association

• The committee reviewed the Fiscal Year 2027 Memorandum of Agreement between the county and the Montgomery County Volunteer Fire-Rescue Association (MCVFRA). The agreement was introduced as a resolution on April 14, 2026, and requires Council approval because it has current or future fiscal impacts.
• Agreement term is July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029. The star said the county executive sent proposed implementing allowable April 23, 2026, after which legislation was soon to be scheduled. The transcript states the agreement itself was received on May 1, which if taken literally would be after the April 29 meeting date; no minutes were available with the transmit to reconcile that discrepancy.
• The MOA includes a 2.5% increase in MCVFRA funding, with an estimated FY27 fiscal impact of between $8,000 and $9,000; a new volunteer training academy course at approximately $50,000; ultrasound cancer screening reimbursement for active vulnerable volunteers every 36 months; recommended reimbursement of up to $800 once every 10 years for multi-cancer early detection blood testing; and changes to the Length of Service Award Program, including increased benefits and eligibility and death-benefit adjustments, all contingent on the introduction of the coming LOSAP legislation.
• A representative of the County Volunteer Fire-Rescue Association, Chief Ryman, described the agreement as one of the most collaborative bargaining processes in the history of the program and highlighted EMS-only job tasks and new cancer screening protections as innovations.
• The committee authorized staff to update the draft report language to reflect that the proposed legislation had been received and approved the MOA 3-0.

Key Outcomes

• Committee voted 3-0 to include OEMHS’s three reconciliation items related to the Everbridge Alert System, public-access trauma kits, and the fiscal/admin position.
• Committee concluded the joint operations-center CIP amendment with direction to staff to finalize the exact funding split, and then ended the OEMHS package with a 3-3 chairman vote.
• Committee approved the Office of Consumer Protection FY27 budget 3-0.
• Committee voted 3-0 to place the Hillendale Tower reduction on the reconciliation list and to keep the combined Laytonsville Rescue Squad and Medic 32 budget-neutral transfer item together on the reconciliation list.
• Committee approved the Fire and Rescue budget resolution language and 2026 CIP amendments 3-0.
• Committee approved the FY27 MCVFRA Memorandum of Agreement 3-0.