Montgomery County Board of Commissioners Meeting – May 7, 2026

The Montgomery County Board of Commissioners met on May 7, 2026, with all three commissioners present. The board made recognitions, received election updates, heard presentations from the Coroner’s Office and Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board, took public comment, and approved routine motions. Commissioners also gave extended remarks on the U.S. Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais decision.

Consent Calendar

The following routine items were approved by separate motions unless otherwise noted:

• Approved the minutes of the April 23, 2026 board meeting.
• Approved a resolution authorizing county signatories for Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry grant submissions, designating Jenny Butler as signatory and Jane Stein as backup.
• Approved Resolution G-2 on reappointments to the Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board.
• Approved the May 7, 2026 personnel list and, in the subsequent Salary Board meeting, the May 7, 2026 salary board list.
• Approved advertisements of bids and RFPs for Montgomery County on Exhibit A, except item A3.
• Approved contracts, awards, amendments, and renewals for Montgomery County (Exhibit B) and the Southeast PA Regional Task Force (Exhibit C), plus advertisements of bids and RFPs for the task force (Exhibit D).

Public Comments & Testimony

• David Morgan from Ambler raised concerns about spending, noting a $269,000 networking-equipment item and $258,000 data-fiber service on the agenda. He said the county has not yet had a financial presentation this year and could face a large tax increase. Commissioner Winder responded that the county is in the home stretch of identifying a chief financial officer and will give a financial presentation soon.
• Morgan also discussed data-center water demands, citing 75,000 gallons a day in a local article, and asked for a possible presentation on the Montgomery County Planning Commission’s data center ordinance guide. He later saluted mothers, played an Irish lullaby, and encouraged support for pregnancy resource centers and the county’s parent/infant guide.
• Joe Rooney from Abington asked about $9.4 million in early intervention services and $40,000–$50,000 in MCIU contracts, referencing prior news reports about MCIU spending on Kenyan safaris and trips to Singapore and Korea. Commissioners said the county controller’s office reviewed MCIU funds and that health/human services staff are monitoring service funding.
• Rooney also said the proposed $50,000 F-150 hybrid price seemed reasonable, promoted the Greater Glenside Patriotic Association parade, recognized mothers of deployed service members, and expressed full support for the Supreme Court’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, encouraging people to read the 92-page opinion.

Discussion Items

Recognitions and Opening Remarks

• The board recognized Teacher Appreciation Week and National Nurses Week. A commissioner visited Paul Fly Elementary School and Mainline Health, presented a proclamation to Mainline Health officials, and acknowledged nurses from the county Health and Human Services Department.
• The board celebrated the first-ever Montgomery County youth summit, which drew more than 100 students.
• Montgomery County received the High Performance Government Award at OpenGov’s conference after identifying $14 million in annual cost savings and cutting a $50 million budget deficit in half, leading to the county’s first bipartisan budget in nearly a decade. The Office of Innovation Strategy and Performance, led by Eli Gilman, was credited for the work.
• The county moved most virtual meetings to Microsoft Teams to save on Zoom licensing costs.
• Commissioner DeBello announced a Fire Chiefs Association initiative, funded by a FEMA grant, to recruit 250 new volunteer firefighters.

Election and Pre-Primary Information

• Commissioner McKeesha said the May 19 primary is approaching and noted 622,000 registered voters, 77,000 mail ballots sent, and 37,000 ballots returned. She encouraged use of 18 secure drop boxes, available through Election Day at 8 p.m., and noted satellite offices and a telephone town hall on May 11 at 6 p.m. with state Sen. R. Haywood.
• The primary will be the first to use electronic poll books in the county. Voters at the wrong polling place can be given printed directions immediately.
• Commissioner McKeesha also discussed county AI projects, including 9-1-1 call triage, emergency-response forecasting, court-system chatbots, rapid rehousing, and permitting. She cited Vertex’s layoff of about 170 workers, almost 10% of its workforce, as a sign of AI-driven job displacement and encouraged careers in fields like nursing.

Supreme Court Ruling Discussion

• Commissioner Winder said Louisiana v. Callais weakens a key pillar of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and underscored the need to stay engaged and vote.
• Commissioner McKeesha called the ruling devastating, quoted Justice Kagan’s dissent, and said the only solution is mobilization. She also noted moves in several states to alter majority-Black districts.
• Commissioner DeBello said Montgomery County has no authority in the matter, characterized the ruling as returning redistricting power to states, acknowledged gerrymandering by both parties, and expressed hope for fair population-based districts after the 2030 redistricting cycle.
• Commissioner McKeesha responded that framing the issue as merely partisan was insulting, citing historic and ongoing racism in politics and the importance of fair representation.

Coroner’s Office Presentation

• Dr. Janine Darby, Montgomery County Coroner, presented an overview of the office’s work: investigating sudden, unexpected, unexplained, and traumatic deaths; issuing death certificates; positively identifying decedents; notifying legal next of kin; securing personal property; and approving cremations.
• In 2025, 2,842 deaths were reported to the office, with 1,232 full coroner investigations and 1,610 referrals. The office serves more than 856,000 residents across nearly 500 square miles.
• The top three causes of death in the coroner’s caseload were cardiac, falls, and drug overdose. Same-level falls were highlighted as preventable, especially among residents aged 80–89.
• There were 91 suicides in 2025. Deaths of unhoused individuals totaled 38, with outdoors as the most common location; one was an infant living outdoors with their mother.
• Organ and tissue donation results included 24 organ donors, 77 organs transplanted, 205 tissue donors, and more than 380 tissue recipients.
• Upcoming events included an infant/child death investigation seminar, a June 10 blood drive versus Bucks County, and a June 30 suicide-prevention crochet event.

Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board / America 250 Presentation

• Tourism officials presented their America 250 strategy, forecasting strong demand. They said the next three months would see total room revenue growth above 15% and that March RevPAR was $82, the best in the suburban region, with room demand up 5.5%.
• The 2026 economic impact forecast is about $2.75 billion, up from the 2025 forecast of $2.5 billion, supporting 40,000 jobs and more than 8 million visitors.
• Major upcoming events include the PGA Championship, FIFA World Cup, MLB All-Star Game, and U.S. Amateur. County-involved events such as Made Hoops, Beast of the East Flag Football, and Lacrosse World Series are expected to bring about 10,000 hotel room nights.
• Marketing efforts included a CBS March Madness partnership, NFL draft geo-targeting, a Patriot Tales comic book, Cirque du Soleil’s Lucia at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, PGA radio and Lyft partnerships, a multilingual World Cup blog, and a planned watch party in King of Prussia.
• Other community items included Houses of Declaration readings at nearly 30 locations, Valley Forge National Historical Park’s 50th Federal Park Anniversary, the 12th annual Freedom from Hunger Drive, the fifth annual Monco Jazz Fest, and the 20th annual Revolutionary 5-Mile Run, which raised a record $100,000.

Key Outcomes

• All routine motions listed in the Consent Calendar were approved.
• Item A3, an advertisement of bids and RFPs, was approved separately on a roll-call vote. Commissioner McKeesha said she did not believe the county should be involved in the “mass delicing program” in the context of homelessness and opiate settlement funds. Commissioner Winder clarified that the item only authorized an RFP to see who would respond.
• The next regular board meeting was set for May 21, 2026 at 10 a.m. in the boardroom.
• The board meeting adjourned, followed by a Salary Board meeting in which the salary list was approved. The board also recognized Kevin, a retiring Green Lane Park employee with more than 30 years of service.