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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Bi-County Meeting: Prince George's and Montgomery Councils Approve FY2027 Budgets - May 14, 2026

County Council & Boards — Thursday, May 14, 2026

BodyPrince Georges County, Maryland

SessionCounty Council & Boards

DateThursday, May 14, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 9:40

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0:01

Good morning.

0:02

I'm Councilwoman Crystal Orieta, the chair of the Prince George's County Council, President Van Egan Gonzalez, on behalf of my colleagues from Prince George's County Council.

0:13

I'm pleased to welcome you and your colleagues from Montgomery County Council to the 2026 by County meeting.

0:20

We're grateful for your continued partnership between our two counties as we work together to serve the residents of the region.

0:26

I want us to begin by just having an opportunity to introduce the council members from both jurisdictions.

0:34

Again, I'm Councilwoman Chris Oriada representing District 7 and also serving as the chair.

0:53

I think you guys are our sibling for everything we do.

0:57

We we know we can count on Prince George's County, and always exciting to discuss parking planning in WSSE.

1:04

So we're gonna first uh go with Prince Race County for introduction and then council members from Montgomery County, right?

1:09

I'll turn it back to you.

1:11

Thank you.

1:12

Um, Vice Chair.

1:14

Thank you very much.

1:15

It's great to be with everybody, Eric Olson, uh Vice Chair and um representing District Three.

1:22

I guess uh Madam Chair will go through District one through nine and at large.

1:28

Thank you.

1:29

Greetings, everybody.

1:30

Tom Dinoga County Council District One, right here looking out my window at Montgomery County as always.

1:47

Councilmember Adams, you're muted uh it's hard for me to hear right now.

1:56

We're just introducing ourselves, councilmember.

2:06

I don't know if you can hear me, so I'll say councilmember Adams, uh representing District 4 is joining us.

2:21

Madam Chair, Councilmember Adam Stafford has stepped away.

2:25

Okay.

2:28

Councilmember Harrison.

2:31

Thank you, Madam Chair.

2:32

Good morning, everyone.

2:34

My name is Sydney Harrison.

2:35

I represent uh County Council District 9, which is the southern part of Prince George's County.

2:43

Thank you.

2:45

Good morning, everyone.

2:47

I'm Jolene Ivey.

2:48

I'm an at-large council member, and that of course means I represent the whole county.

2:54

Thank you.

2:59

Thank you.

3:00

And I believe that concludes all the council members I can see online on the Prince George's County side.

3:04

Um, so we'll go to Montgomery County.

3:13

Um hi everyone.

3:14

Uh Marilyn Balcom.

3:15

I'm the council vice president.

3:17

I represent District 2, uh, which is the northwest corner of Montgomery County.

3:23

Good morning, everyone.

3:24

I am Shebrah Evans, Councilmember representing the whole entire county.

3:28

I'm at large.

3:29

Good to see everyone.

3:35

Morning, Andrew Friedson, District One.

3:39

Evan Glass, at large council member.

3:42

Good to be with you all.

3:44

Yeah, Will Jawondo, uh, at large council member.

3:47

Good morning, everybody.

3:49

Don Lidke, District 7, which is the upper east side of the county.

4:00

Kristen Mink, District 5, Sharon A Border with Councilmember Dernoda.

4:09

Hi, Kate Stewart, District 4.

4:11

And if I stand on my porch, I'm looking at Prince George's.

4:14

So good to see you all today.

4:18

And I know Councilmember Katz is uh oh, I see.

4:21

It's uh calling in.

4:27

Good morning, Councilmember Laurie and Sales at large.

4:31

Good to be here with everyone.

4:33

Thank you.

4:36

And that was everyone for us with Councilmember Katz logging in and in a couple of minutes, okay?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

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Budget Equity Analysis██████████████████████████37%

Summary of Proceedings

Bi-County Meeting: Prince George's County Council and Montgomery County Council

On Thursday, May 14, 2026, the Prince George's County Council and Montgomery County Council held a joint virtual bi-county meeting to review and adopt the Fiscal Year 2027 budgets for the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC Water), the bi-county portion of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), and the Washington Suburban Transit Commission. The meeting began with introductions from council members of both jurisdictions, followed by staff presentations and a unanimous vote to approve the proposed budgets.

Discussion Items

FY2027 Budget Recommendations: Council staff from both counties presented joint recommendations:
- For the M-NCPPC Central Administrative Services (CAS) budget, staff recommended approval with a reduction of $223,795 for Prince George's County and $202,123 for Montgomery County, resulting in revised FY2027 CAS budgets of $14,961,244 (Prince George's) and $13,541,014 (Montgomery).
- For agency-wide collective bargaining and compensation policies, staff recommended supporting the amounts allocated in the commission's FY2027 budget – $8.2 million for Prince George's County and $5.5 million for Montgomery County – and that compensation adjustments not exceed these figures.
- For WSSC Water, staff recommended approval of the budgets and Capital Improvements Program as submitted by WSSC Water.
- For the Washington Suburban Transit Commission, staff recommended approval of the proposed FY2027 amounts: $149,293 for Prince George's County and $171,793 for Montgomery County.
Voting Procedure: Chair Oriadha outlined the traditional voting procedure requiring a motion by one council member, a second by a member of the other council, and a majority vote from each council to pass.
Motion and Vote: Councilmember Don Lidke (Montgomery County) made a motion to approve all three budgets; Vice Chair Eric Olson (Prince George's County) seconded. The motion passed unanimously with all council members voting aye, no opposition.

Key Outcomes

The councils unanimously approved the FY2027 budgets for WSSC Water (as submitted), the M-NCPPC CAS budget (with reductions as recommended), and the Washington Suburban Transit Commission (as proposed).
The councils also endorsed the compensation policies and amounts for M-NCPPC employees, limiting adjustments to the proposed totals ($5.5M for Montgomery, $8.2M for Prince George's).
The meeting adjourned after the vote, with no further business.

Meeting Transcript

Good morning. I'm Councilwoman Crystal Orieta, the chair of the Prince George's County Council, President Van Egan Gonzalez, on behalf of my colleagues from Prince George's County Council. I'm pleased to welcome you and your colleagues from Montgomery County Council to the 2026 by County meeting. We're grateful for your continued partnership between our two counties as we work together to serve the residents of the region. I want us to begin by just having an opportunity to introduce the council members from both jurisdictions. Again, I'm Councilwoman Chris Oriada representing District 7 and also serving as the chair. I think you guys are our sibling for everything we do. We we know we can count on Prince George's County, and always exciting to discuss parking planning in WSSE. So we're gonna first uh go with Prince Race County for introduction and then council members from Montgomery County, right? I'll turn it back to you. Thank you. Um, Vice Chair. Thank you very much. It's great to be with everybody, Eric Olson, uh Vice Chair and um representing District Three. I guess uh Madam Chair will go through District one through nine and at large. Thank you. Greetings, everybody. Tom Dinoga County Council District One, right here looking out my window at Montgomery County as always. Councilmember Adams, you're muted uh it's hard for me to hear right now. We're just introducing ourselves, councilmember. I don't know if you can hear me, so I'll say councilmember Adams, uh representing District 4 is joining us. Madam Chair, Councilmember Adam Stafford has stepped away. Okay. Councilmember Harrison. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning, everyone. My name is Sydney Harrison. I represent uh County Council District 9, which is the southern part of Prince George's County. Thank you. Good morning, everyone. I'm Jolene Ivey. I'm an at-large council member, and that of course means I represent the whole county. Thank you. Thank you. And I believe that concludes all the council members I can see online on the Prince George's County side. Um, so we'll go to Montgomery County. Um hi everyone. Uh Marilyn Balcom. I'm the council vice president. I represent District 2, uh, which is the northwest corner of Montgomery County. Good morning, everyone. I am Shebrah Evans, Councilmember representing the whole entire county. I'm at large. Good to see everyone. Morning, Andrew Friedson, District One. Evan Glass, at large council member. Good to be with you all. Yeah, Will Jawondo, uh, at large council member. Good morning, everybody. Don Lidke, District 7, which is the upper east side of the county.

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