Refugee Resettlements, Traffic Safety: Nov. 19 Council Agenda

ROCKVILLE, MD — The Montgomery County Council has a busy agenda Tuesday morning, as they tackle issues ranging from refugee resettlements to racial equity and social justice.

Here's everything you need to know about Tuesday's agenda:

Bill 27-19, Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice - Racial Equity and Social Justice Advisory Committee - Established
The Council is scheduled to vote on Bill 27-19. The Racial Equity and Social Justice Act is spearheaded by Montgomery County Council President Nancy Navarro and co-sponsored by all nine council members.

The new bill would establish an Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice in the executive branch and require leaders to adopt a countywide racial equity and social justice action plan.

It would also require that legislation, government programs, and public policy initiatives include a racial equity and social justice impact statement. In other words, whenever public officials compile a master plan or proposal, they must include a report that outlines the potential effects their policies could have on different racial groups.

A Racial Equity and Social Justice Advisory Committee would also be established under this bill. The committee would include members of the public.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

Resolution to adopt an Economic Development Platform for Montgomery County
The Council is scheduled to vote on a resolution to adopt a new Economic Development Platform for the county. Officials say the Economic Development Platform resolution "is a guiding document that identifies a thriving and diversified economy, greater innovation, racial equity and social justice, and environmental sustainably as desired outcomes."

The goal: grow the county's tax base by creating new, well-paying jobs, removing regulatory barriers for new businesses seeking to locate or expand in the area, and investing in business and workforce development, transportation and housing.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

Resolution to support refugee resettlement in Montgomery County
The Council is expected to vote on a resolution supporting refugee resettlement in the county. Montgomery County.

"The resolution reinforces the Council's support for the principle of accepting refugees into the County regardless of their religion, race, nationality, sexual orientation, gender identity or country of origin," officials said in a statement.

Council member Hans Riemer is the lead sponsor. All other council members are co-sponsors.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

Bill 35-19, Personnel – Collective Bargaining – Certified Representative – Duty of Fair Representation
The Council is expected to introduce Bill 35-19. Sponsored by council member Tom Hucker, the bill would "amend the duty of fair representation for a certified representative of County employees and authorize a certified representative to impose the reasonable costs of filing a grievance or pursuing arbitration on an employee who does not pay membership dues or the equivalent," according to officials.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

State Legislative Program
The Montgomery County Delegation will hold public hearings on local and bi-county bills that will be introduced in the 2020 state legislative session in early December. The purpose of this memo is to provide information on these bills so that council members can offer their positions.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

Vision Zero Program to promote pedestrian, bicycle, and traffic safety
The Council will discuss Vision Zero, a county initiative that aims to reduce severe and fatal collisions for drivers and their passengers, pedestrians, and bicyclists by 2030.

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

The Council will hold the following public hearing:
Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 19-07, Telecommunications Towers - Limited Use
At 7:30 p.m., the Council will hold a public hearing on ZTA 19-07, which would amend the county's Zoning Ordinance to do the following:

• Allow certain telecommunications towers as a limited or conditional use in certain residential zones;
• Revise the standards for telecommunications towers allowed as a limited or conditional use;
• Revise the conditional use findings required for the replacement of a pre-existing pole; and
• Generally amend use requirements to address certain telecommunications towers.

Per officials: "This ZTA would allow poles with antennas as a limited use in residential zones where the pole for the antenna would replace a pre-existing utility pole, streetlight pole, or site plan-approved parking lot light pole. This ZTA also would change the standards and procedures for poles that require conditional use approval. A Planning, Housing and Economic Development (PHED) Committee meeting on ZTA 19-07 is tentatively scheduled for Jan. 23, 2020."

The Council staff report can be viewed here.

The Council meeting will be broadcasted live on County Cable Montgomery. It can be viewed on Cable Channels 996 (high definition) and 6 (standard definition) on Comcast; Channels 1056 (HD) and 6 (SD) on RCN; and Channel 30 on Verizon.

The Council meeting also will be available live via streaming through the Council web site at: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/ondemand/index.html.