Councilmember Trachtenberg Meets with the Up-County Citizens Advisory Board

Councilmember Duchy Tractenberg visited with the Up-County Citizens Advisory Board last at the Up-County Regional Services Center, located at 12900 Middlebrook Road, Germantown, MD 20874.

The Councilmember’s remarks, as Chair of the Management and Fiscal Policy Committee (MFP), focused primarily on the current and growing challenges of the FY11 operating budget proposal that is presently being considered by the County Council. She talked about the budget shortfall resulting from decreasing tax revenues and prospective cuts to a wide range of County services. She also noted the serious challenge to the county’s Triple A Bond rating resulting from a deteriorating economic and fiscal environment. She said that it was going to be critical to fundamentally restructure County government. She also discussed recent Council action regarding two Master Plans—the White Flint Sector Plan and the Great Seneca Science Corridor Master Plan—as both being critical for the future soundness of Montgomery County’s economic health.

During the Q&A period, a serious conversation took place that touched on a wide range of topics, including a fairer distribution of the state’s tax revenue for Montgomery County; the fate of the Regional Service Centers; the recent defeat of the alchohol tax; and a possible rise in the gas tax.

The Up-County Citizens Advisory Board meets the third Monday of every month at the Up-County Regional Services Center and these meetings are open to the public. For more information, click here.

County Executive’s Budget Forum in Germantown

The Trachtenberg Office was represented at County Executive Isiah Leggett’s first 2009 Budget Forum in Germantown. The meeting was held at the Upcounty Regional Services Center on Middlebrook Road. This is the first of five budget forums being held in January that are open to residents from any part of the county. The forums are hosted by the Regional Services Center Directors and the Regional Services Center Citizen Advisory Boards. The meeting was very well attended, with impressive participation of members of the Upcounty Citizens Advisory Board. Our Chief of Staff Alan Bowser attended on behalf of Councilmember Trachtenberg.

After introductions by the Director of the Upcounty Regional Services Center and the Chair of the Citizens Advisory Board, and an overview of the budget presented by an official in the Office of Management and Budget, the County Executive answers a broad range of questions from members of the audience and from online and telephone participants. Among the issues addressed were the impact of budget cuts on education, Montgomery College, affordable housing, transportation, library services and public safety. Participants also asked about taxes, and the County’s competitiveness vis-a-vis neighboring jurisdictions.

The Forum was broadcast live on Cable Channel Montgomery, and will be rebroadcast occasionally over the next several weeks.