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Record of Proceedings

Rockville City Council Work Session and Legislative Review - September 2, 2026

Meeting Portal — Wednesday, September 2, 2026
BodyRockville, Maryland
SessionMeeting Portal
DateWednesday, September 2, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 14:06

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

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

23rd is to share with you guys what we heard from the planning and zoning commission to make sure you guys are aligned with them and then we're able to um make any necessary changes to the actual code language before we continue with additional work sessions.

0:15

That seemed to be the most logical way to do

Unassigned speaker

0:18

it.

Speaker 1

0:18

Mayor Ashton.

Speaker 2

0:20

Thank you.

0:21

Just a quick check because I know this I'm I'm reasoning because it came up with the uh planning commission.

0:26

Um we will have an opportunity to see the full revised draft before we have to approve it, correct?

Speaker 1

0:32

Oh, absolutely.

0:33

Yeah.

Speaker 2

0:34

Excellent.

0:34

Just want to make sure.

0:35

Thank you.

Speaker 1

0:36

Yeah, and that's what I was trying to articulate.

0:38

This meet the first meeting, March 23rd is just, you know, probably six to ten.

0:44

I may get that off by a couple, but six to ten items that we knew we wanted to have some detailed conversations and recommendations for the planning and zoning commission.

0:54

We hear your feedback to make sure there's alignment or not, then we draft, then we send the draft out to you guys, and then we get into the beef year work sessions, work sessions where we'll say, hey, focus in on articles one, two, five, and then seven eight nine for the next one, et cetera.

1:10

Because I know you guys wanted that um ability to zoom in on certain sections as you do your review.

1:18

All right, April 13th, another budget work session, second piece of 301 Frederick Avenue, conveyance of the property, and then the zoning ordinance rewrite, comprehensive plan zoning map amendment.

1:32

We'll add a little bit more detail on that as we get closer.

1:37

April 20th.

Unassigned speaker

1:40

Gonna

Speaker 1

1:40

see a rhythm here.

1:41

More zoning ordinance rewrite.

1:44

April 27th, again, zoning ordinance rewrite.

1:47

You can see that one.

1:48

We got a little bit more detail with what we're gonna be talking about.

Unassigned speaker

1:52

And

Speaker 1

1:52

then we're excited to present you guys the climate action plan and EV readiness plan.

1:56

We're gonna do that together as a special presentation.

2:00

Maybe I'll stop there unless there's some yellow that we added.

2:04

If whoever's driving can just see if there's any yellow, I just want to call some things out of case there are.

2:08

There we

Unassigned speaker

2:09

go.

Speaker 1

2:09

Um, we are gonna add again May 18th, just a summary of where we are with the outreach efforts related to annexation, and to make sure you guys are comfortable with our our planned approach for Shady Grove, which I've talked to you guys about.

2:23

So that's exciting.

2:24

A lot of work in that space.

2:25

Let's see if there's anything else, whoever's driving on yellow.

2:28

That might be

Unassigned speaker

2:29

it.

Speaker 1

2:30

Yeah, that's

Unassigned speaker

2:31

it.

Speaker 1

2:32

Any questions, other questions on six months from anybody?

Speaker 2

2:36

Can you show us the um sorry?

2:40

I see it now.

2:41

May 18th, landlord tenant.

2:43

I just wanted to clarify that date.

Speaker 1

2:45

Yep, you bet.

2:45

That's gonna be a beefy meeting, you guys, but we'll get through

Unassigned speaker

2:48

it.

Speaker 1

2:49

You'll hear that a lot from you over the next, I don't know, probably till August, right?

2:53

So

Speaker 2

2:54

that is a lot to do, um, but we'll see how we can get through

Unassigned speaker

2:58

it.

Unassigned speaker

2:59

Yeah,

Speaker 1

2:59

agreed.

3:00

Agreed.

3:02

All right, let's jump into the legislative review team meeting.

3:14

All right.

3:15

If we can make it just a little bit bigger for Barry, that would be great.

3:24

Ah, there we go.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Transportation Safety█████████████████████21%
Immigration Policy██████████████████18%
Zoning Ordinance Rewrite████████████████16%
Legislative Priorities███████████████15%
Public Safety█████████████13%
Zoning And Land Use██████████10%
Scheduling Meetings███████7%
Summary of Proceedings

Rockville City Council Work Session and Legislative Review Team Meeting - September 2, 2026

The meeting included a review of the upcoming six-month work plan and a legislative review team session where council members discussed multiple state and county bills, expressed support positions, and planned testimony. Key topics included immigration enforcement prohibitions, face covering regulations, data privacy, school security, algorithmic price fixing, and bicycle safety.

Discussion Items

  • Six-Month Work Plan: Staff presented a draft schedule of work sessions and hearings from March 23 to May 18, 2026. Key dates included:
    • March 23: Planning and zoning commission feedback on zoning ordinance rewrite.
    • April 13: Budget work session and 301 Frederick Avenue property conveyance.
    • April 20 and 27: Continued zoning ordinance rewrite.
    • May 18: Climate action plan, EV readiness plan, annexation outreach summary, landlord-tenant code update, and Shady Grove strategy.
  • Legislative Review Team:
    • HB 444 / SB 245: Emergency bill prohibiting local governments from entering immigration enforcement agreements. Already signed into law. Council expressed support.
    • SB 1 / HB 1341: Prohibits face coverings; amended and passed in the House. Council agreed to continue monitoring.
    • SB 504 / HB 71: Modifies online data privacy act and public information act regarding personal records. Council considered it reasonable to support and continue monitoring.
    • SB 810 / HB 1341: Prohibits public school security personnel from engaging in federal immigration enforcement. Council voted to support without providing testimony. (Thumbs up from council members.)
    • Montgomery County Bill 826 (Anti-Algorithmic Price Fixing Act): Council expressed support for the county bill. Mayor Ashton and council members Jackson and Shaw indicated interest in testifying. Staff will monitor state-level action before advancing a local ordinance. Council directed staff to keep the issue on the agenda.
    • HB 1567: Requires operators of bicycles, motor scooters, and electric mobility devices to exercise care and maintain a three-foot distance from pedestrians. Council supported the bill but raised concerns about infrastructure limitations (narrow paths on routes like MD 355 or MD 28). Staff will send the bill language to council, gather input from public works and police, and consider suggesting amendments.

Key Outcomes

  • Council approved support for SB 810 (school security/immigration) without testimony.
  • Council approved support for the Montgomery County anti-algorithmic pricing bill; staff will draft recommended testimony for Mayor Ashton, Councilmember Jackson, and Councilmember Shaw.
  • Council directed staff to send HB 1567 language to all members and to public works and police for comment before finalizing written support.
  • Staff will continue tracking state bills and report back.

Meeting Transcript

23rd is to share with you guys what we heard from the planning and zoning commission to make sure you guys are aligned with them and then we're able to um make any necessary changes to the actual code language before we continue with additional work sessions. That seemed to be the most logical way to do it. Mayor Ashton. Thank you. Just a quick check because I know this I'm I'm reasoning because it came up with the uh planning commission. Um we will have an opportunity to see the full revised draft before we have to approve it, correct? Oh, absolutely. Yeah. Excellent. Just want to make sure. Thank you. Yeah, and that's what I was trying to articulate. This meet the first meeting, March 23rd is just, you know, probably six to ten. I may get that off by a couple, but six to ten items that we knew we wanted to have some detailed conversations and recommendations for the planning and zoning commission. We hear your feedback to make sure there's alignment or not, then we draft, then we send the draft out to you guys, and then we get into the beef year work sessions, work sessions where we'll say, hey, focus in on articles one, two, five, and then seven eight nine for the next one, et cetera. Because I know you guys wanted that um ability to zoom in on certain sections as you do your review. All right, April 13th, another budget work session, second piece of 301 Frederick Avenue, conveyance of the property, and then the zoning ordinance rewrite, comprehensive plan zoning map amendment. We'll add a little bit more detail on that as we get closer. April 20th. Gonna see a rhythm here. More zoning ordinance rewrite. April 27th, again, zoning ordinance rewrite. You can see that one. We got a little bit more detail with what we're gonna be talking about. And then we're excited to present you guys the climate action plan and EV readiness plan. We're gonna do that together as a special presentation. Maybe I'll stop there unless there's some yellow that we added. If whoever's driving can just see if there's any yellow, I just want to call some things out of case there are. There we go. Um, we are gonna add again May 18th, just a summary of where we are with the outreach efforts related to annexation, and to make sure you guys are comfortable with our our planned approach for Shady Grove, which I've talked to you guys about. So that's exciting. A lot of work in that space. Let's see if there's anything else, whoever's driving on yellow. That might be it. Yeah, that's it. Any questions, other questions on six months from anybody? Can you show us the um sorry? I see it now. May 18th, landlord tenant. I just wanted to clarify that date. Yep, you bet. That's gonna be a beefy meeting, you guys, but we'll get through it. You'll hear that a lot from you over the next, I don't know, probably till August, right?

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