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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee Summary: October 22, 2026

County Council & Boards — Thursday, October 22, 2026

BodyPrince Georges County, Maryland

SessionCounty Council & Boards

DateThursday, October 22, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:21:32

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording. Names come from transcript evidence. “Possibly” marks uncertain attribution.

Speaker 1

0:01

Okay, good morning, everyone.

0:02

This is the Transportation Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee.

0:13

Unless we squeeze one in next week on Halloween, right?

0:19

Um

Unassigned speaker

0:20

so

Speaker 1

0:21

we only had three items on the agenda.

0:22

We're gonna start with the water and sewer CR97.

0:25

I'll turn to Mr.

0:26

Battle.

Speaker 2

0:27

Thank you, Mr.

0:28

Chairman and members of the committee.

0:30

Uh CR97, the uh June cycle of amendments to the water and sewer plan has two applications uh for water and sewer category change and one water withdrawal appropriation, as well as uh a few um what are called countywide redesignations, which are updates to the water and sewer maps.

0:56

So we'll start first with the application 26 W05, which is 4110 Ryan Road.

1:04

The um proposal is for one single family home to be um occupied by the owner.

1:12

Um current categories five.

1:14

The request is for category three and the county exec and the planning board recommend uh approval of advancement to category three.

1:23

Second um application is 26 W06 7809 Kroom Road.

1:30

Uh the proposal is for 10 single-family homes with a minimum of 3,500 square feet of livable space and a minimum $600,000 sales price.

1:41

Um this the request is to go from category five to category four.

1:46

Um county execs recommendation is to retain category five due to some environmental uh concerns with the property, uh including um some Marlborough clay that's been identified there as well as uh portion of the property is in the uh floodplain.

2:06

So the planning board also um um agrees with the county exec's recommendation on that.

2:14

Um the water withdrawal appropriation uh is 26 WWP 01 is for the lake presidential irrigation well replacement and what what the proposal here is to replace uh the existing um well that uh it that provides water for the irrigation system for uh the lake presidential golf course.

2:41

Um this proposal is to um again have approval to uh replace their uh irrigation well.

2:51

Um this process also the condition uh in the approval is it also requires approval from the Maryland Department

Speaker 3

3:00

of the Environment.

Speaker 2

3:01

So um, and I believe the county exec and um the planning board recommend the conditional approval.

3:11

So

Unassigned speaker

3:12

uh

Speaker 2

3:12

Mr.

3:12

Chair, if you have some uh comments or or need some further clarification on that, we can do

Unassigned speaker

3:19

that.

Speaker 2

3:20

Uh but otherwise the uh both the county exec and the planning board recommend conditional approval.

3:26

Um and the countywide redesignations, of course, are in district nine, where uh usually where uh the maps need to be updated to reflect uh current properties that are already connected uh to the system.

3:42

So Mr.

3:43

Chair, with that that concludes my overview.

3:47

Um as we've done in the past, we could do one motion unless.

3:55

Oh, yes, sir.

Speaker 1

3:57

Um I'd like to hear from Deepai on on any any comments on these.

4:02

I I had a question that I sent to

Unassigned speaker

4:05

you

Speaker 1

4:05

this morning, and uh this is important for Ms.

4:08

Hunter because I think presidential is in your district.

4:11

Is it in six or four?

Speaker 2

4:14

Six.

Speaker 1

4:16

Yeah.

4:17

Um back 20 some years ago.

4:20

I recall that there's a lot of dispute

Speaker 4

4:22

uh

Speaker 1

4:22

this this uh discussion about water withdrawal permits under National Harbor wanted one and some other people wanted one, and I think we rejected those because there was problems with the aquifers down in South County and people with their wells.

4:34

So my my question was this is gonna go from the tuxin aquifer to the Tapsco aquifer, which where the aquifers run, that doesn't necessarily mean anything geographically, as far as I remember.

4:49

So my question is how comfortable are we with that much withdrawal for a golf course rather than them using another source?

5:04

And where are we with uh our how our wells are doing with aquifers with the aquifers right now throughout the county?

Speaker 5

5:29

Typically, when the county gives a conditional approval, it goes to MDE.

5:35

MDE does the more extensive study, and they also hold a public hearing on these before they would actually permit the well.

5:45

So we would look to them to do the extensive uh investigations on how it might affect or impact any um of the wells in the area, residential wells and in the area.

Speaker 1

5:58

Okay, so my experience, which is very limited, is that you can put a water withdrawal well here, particularly if you're taking a lot of water, it could have an impact further away because these aquifers run quite a distance.

6:10

I I believe am I totally incorrect or am I close to

Speaker 6

6:15

all shared water?

6:16

Yes.

Speaker 1

6:17

Okay, so have we been getting complaints about uh access to water with the wells or drying up aquifers?

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Water And Wastewater Management████████████████████████████████████36%

Energy Management██████████████████████22%

Budget Equity Analysis████████8%

Procedural██████6%

Infrastructure█████5%

Public Engagement█████5%

Public Safety████4%

Fiscal Sustainability████4%

Government Operations████4%

Summary of Proceedings

Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee Summary: October 22, 2026

The Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment (TIEE) Committee of the Prince George's County Council met on October 22, 2026, at 10:00 AM to consider two legislative resolutions and receive a staff briefing on fund deficits. The committee voted favorably to recommend a resolution on Water and Sewer Plan amendments (CR-097-2026) and a resolution on Energy Infrastructure Planning (CR-098-2026). Additionally, the committee received a comprehensive briefing from the Department of Environment (DoE) and the Department of Public Works and Transportation (DPW&T) on structural deficits in the County's Stormwater Management and Solid Waste Management funds.

Discussion Items

Water and Sewer Plan Amendments (CR-097-2026) The committee reviewed the June 2026 cycle of amendments to the 2018 Water and Sewer Plan. The legislation included two applications for water and sewer category changes and one water withdrawal appropriation.

Application 26W05 (4110 Ryan Road) sought a change from category five to three for a single-family home; the County Executive and Planning Board recommended approval.
Application 26W06 (7809 Kroom Road) sought a change from category five to four for 10 single-family homes. The County Executive recommended retaining category five due to environmental concerns including mapped Marlborough clay and floodplain issues, a stance which the applicant is disputing.
The Lake Presidential Golf Course irrigation well replacement (26WWP01) was discussed. Council Members Olson and Harrison raised concerns about the impact on local aquifers (shifting from the Patuxent to the Tapsico aquifer), the cause of the original well's failure, and the requested withdrawal of up to 95,000 gallons per day. Staff indicated that the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) would conduct an extensive study and hold a public hearing, and that the applicant's geologist suggested the final permitted withdrawal would likely be lower. Council Member Hunter requested additional written documentation on these details before the full Council vote.

Briefing on Deficits in Stormwater and Solid Waste Management Funds (BR 10222026) Representatives from DoE (Rushane Jones, Jeff DeHan) and DPW&T (Joanna Smith) presented on the structural deficits affecting the county's stormwater and solid waste enterprise funds.

Key findings: The Clean Water Act fee has not been increased since its establishment in 2015. The stormwater management ad valorem property tax has not been increased since the program was taken over from WSSC in 1987, 38 years prior. Fee collections do not grow with property values. The county manages over 800 miles of stormwater pipes, 900 facilities, five aging pump stations, and 21 classified dams. 67% of stormwater infrastructure has exceeded its service life. Current annual spending of roughly $11 million meets less than 3% of infrastructure needs. The county's rates are the lowest among comparable jurisdictions in Maryland.
Council Member Harrison described the presentation as "sobering" and "depressing," questioning how to address a "40-year hole."
Council Member Adams recommended implementing budget reserves to anticipate and save for future infrastructure costs proactively, rather than operating crisis-to-crisis.
Chair Dernoga acknowledged the political difficulty of raising fees and taxes. He proposed exploring a shift in revenue from the Park and Planning tax surplus (the result of a 1 cent increase in 2015 for the SARC center) to address the fund deficits, suggesting this could be done without increasing the overall tax burden on residents. This proposal generated broad discussion among committee members about the need for political will and bold action.

Energy Infrastructure Planning Resolution (CR-098-2026) The committee considered a resolution sponsored by Council Member Adams-Stafford directing the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) to study the benefits and challenges of master planning for utility use. The committee reviewed a second draft containing amendments negotiated since the resolution was held at a previous meeting.

Key amendments included: adding the DoE and the County Energy Manager as joint study participants; shifting the scope from "energy intensive" industries to "new industries"; clarifying electric vehicle infrastructure needs; referencing state battery storage goals (3,000 MW by 2033); setting a report deadline of October 31, 2027 to inform the next General Plan (Plan 2050); and expanding consultation entities to include the MD PSC, Office of People's Council, higher education institutions, and utilities serving the county. Council Member Adams requested the addition of Washington Gas to the consultation list.
Kathina Schoelers, Acting Deputy Director of the M-NCPPC Planning Department, stated the department was not the expert in this area but was committed to the effort. She requested that the study be integrated into the General Plan development process, citing concerns over the feasibility of the October 2027 deadline due to RFP and contracting requirements. The sponsor and committee members agreed to work with the Planning Department on refinements before the full Council vote.

Key Outcomes

CR-097-2026 (Water and Sewer Plan): A motion by Council Member Harrison, seconded by Council Member Hunter, to recommend favorable approval carried by a vote of 4-0. (Note: There is a discrepancy between the official minutes, which record Council Member Adams as abstaining, and the raw transcript, which records the Council Member responding "Absolutely" to the roll call vote.)
CR-098-2026 (Energy Infrastructure Planning): A motion by Vice Chair Olson, seconded by Council Member Adams, to recommend favorable approval with amendments carried by a vote of 4-0. Council Member Harrison was absent.
Briefing on Fund Deficits: The briefing was held and discussion encouraged. No formal vote was taken. The committee directed staff to continue working with the administration on solutions for the FY28 budget process.
Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned following a motion by Council Member Adams, seconded by Vice Chair Olson.

Meeting Transcript

Okay, good morning, everyone. This is the Transportation Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee. Unless we squeeze one in next week on Halloween, right? Um so we only had three items on the agenda. We're gonna start with the water and sewer CR97. I'll turn to Mr. Battle. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. Uh CR97, the uh June cycle of amendments to the water and sewer plan has two applications uh for water and sewer category change and one water withdrawal appropriation, as well as uh a few um what are called countywide redesignations, which are updates to the water and sewer maps. So we'll start first with the application 26 W05, which is 4110 Ryan Road. The um proposal is for one single family home to be um occupied by the owner. Um current categories five. The request is for category three and the county exec and the planning board recommend uh approval of advancement to category three. Second um application is 26 W06 7809 Kroom Road. Uh the proposal is for 10 single-family homes with a minimum of 3,500 square feet of livable space and a minimum $600,000 sales price. Um this the request is to go from category five to category four. Um county execs recommendation is to retain category five due to some environmental uh concerns with the property, uh including um some Marlborough clay that's been identified there as well as uh portion of the property is in the uh floodplain. So the planning board also um um agrees with the county exec's recommendation on that. Um the water withdrawal appropriation uh is 26 WWP 01 is for the lake presidential irrigation well replacement and what what the proposal here is to replace uh the existing um well that uh it that provides water for the irrigation system for uh the lake presidential golf course. Um this proposal is to um again have approval to uh replace their uh irrigation well. Um this process also the condition uh in the approval is it also requires approval from the Maryland Department of the Environment. So um, and I believe the county exec and um the planning board recommend the conditional approval. So uh Mr. Chair, if you have some uh comments or or need some further clarification on that, we can do that. Uh but otherwise the uh both the county exec and the planning board recommend conditional approval. Um and the countywide redesignations, of course, are in district nine, where uh usually where uh the maps need to be updated to reflect uh current properties that are already connected uh to the system. So Mr. Chair, with that that concludes my overview. Um as we've done in the past, we could do one motion unless. Oh, yes, sir. Um I'd like to hear from Deepai on on any any comments on these. I I had a question that I sent to you this morning, and uh this is important for Ms. Hunter because I think presidential is in your district. Is it in six or four? Six. Yeah. Um back 20 some years ago. I recall that there's a lot of dispute uh this this uh discussion about water withdrawal permits under National Harbor wanted one and some other people wanted one, and I think we rejected those because there was problems with the aquifers down in South County and people with their wells. So my my question was this is gonna go from the tuxin aquifer to the Tapsco aquifer, which where the aquifers run, that doesn't necessarily mean anything geographically, as far as I remember.

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