Sign up for The Ball Bulletin
County Council Members by District:
Look up your district with your address.
Sign up for your County Council Member’s Newsletter!
The George Howard Building is where legislative meetings and public hearings are held.
Current Legislation is listed here.
1st Monday of the month at 7:00 pm is the Legislative Session – the County Council votes on previous month’s bills & introduces new bills for current month.
3rd Monday of the month at 7:00 pm is the public hearing where you can testify orally or submit written testimony. The testimony sign up page goes live after a bill is introduced, then closes 7 pm the night before the hearing. You have 2 minutes as an individual, 3 minutes if you represent an organization.
One day in the 4th week, the County Council will have a work session where experts are invited to discuss the bills with the county council members.
Check the legislative Calendar – all meetings are held virtually on WebEx. They stream live or you can watch them later. It helps to remember the date of the meeting you are interested in watching, as that is how they are listed.
Stay up to date on the latest meetings and news by signing up with the County Council Newsletter.
The Following is a list of bills that the Smarter Growth Alliance for Howard County has written testimony. Each Member Organization will choose to sign on to each letter individually.
Mandating on site moderate income housing in TOD (Transit Oriented Development) districts
CB22-2021
AN ACT requiring the developer of a TOD (Transit Oriented Development) District site to provide the required moderate income housing units on the TOD site; prohibiting certain actions by the developer relating to optional methods or alternative compliance to optional methods; and generally relating to Moderate-Income Housing Unit requirements.
Allowing Developers to Use the Results of a Market Study to Reduce Commercial Space Requirements in a Development in all CAC Zones
CB8-2021 – Failed 3/1/2021
AN ACT amending the Howard County Zoning Regulations to allow all CAC (Corridor Activity Center) zoned properties to reduce the required commercial square footage below 20 square feet per dwelling unit if the Department of Planning and Zoning finds based on a market study submitted by the developer that the reduction is necessary for the financial viability of the project; and generally relating to the CAC zoning district.
Increasing the Building Height in a Transit Oriented Development
CB7-2021 – passed as amended 2/3/2021
AN ACT amending the Howard County Zoning Regulations to allow structures within 750 feet of a MARC station platform to exceed 100 feet in height up to a maximum of 180 feet in height under certain circumstances; requiring that certain moderate income housing units be developed on the site of a TOP development; prohibiting a developer from providing moderate Income Housing units at a different location or paying fees-in-lieu of to the Department of Housing and Community Development for certain moderate income housing units; and generally relating to the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Zoning District.
Changing DPZ Portion of the Technical Report from Recommendation to Analysis
CB57-2020 – passed as amended 11/2/2020
AN ACT amending the Howard County Code to specify that the Department of Planning and Zoning is only to submit Zoning Regulation Amendment petitions on behalf of the County; replace the recommendation requirement with an analysis requirement for the Department of Planning and Zoning’s Technical Staff Reports; to establish criteria for Technical Staff Report analyses; and generally relating to Technical Staff Reports.
CB56-2020 – failed 11/2/2020
AN ACT amending the Howard County Code to remove the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance’s exemption for Conditionally Exempt Residential Subdivision Plans; and generally relating to Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance Exemptions.
Housing Unit Allocation Rolling Average
CB14-2020 – passed 4/6/2020
AN ACT amending the Howard County Code to adjust, beginning on July 1, 2020, the use of the Housing Unit Allocation Rolling Average provision as defined in the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance; and generally relating to the Housing Unit Allocation Rolling Average provision.
Resolution to Adopt WalkHoward
CR14-2020 – passed 2/3/2020
A RESOLUTION adopting WalkHoward, the Howard County Pedestrian Master Plan and authorizing the Office of Transportation to publish WalkHoward.
Bird Friendly Building Design
CB11-2020 – passed 7/6/2020
AN ACT to require certain projects to document that the project meets specified bird-friendly design standards; providing for a delay in enforcement of this Act; and generally relating to environmental design.
Increasing the Number of Years a Project Must Undergo the School Capacity Test Before it Passes by Default
CB1-2020 – failed 4/6/2020
AN ACT altering the number of consecutive years a project or phase of a project must be retested if a project fails one or more components of the school capacity test of the Adequate Public Facilities Act of Howard County.
Forest Conservation Update
CB62-2019 – passed as amended 12/2/2019
AN ACT repealing and reenacting the Forest Conservation Act of Howard County; requiring a Forest Conservation Plan for any person, or unit of local government, developing land 40,000 square feet or greater.
Setting forth the requirements of a Forest Conservation Plan; providing for the review of the plan and requiring a Forest Conservation Manual to be prepared and adopted with specific standards and guidelines with regard to Forest Retention Priorities, reforestation and afforestation requirements based on certain calculations and location priorities and preferred methods; requiring certain site design; requiring certain financial security for afforestation and reforestation; authorizing a fee-in-lieu under certain conditions to be kept in a Forest Conservation Fund, providing for certain enforcement and penalties and requiring mitigation by the County when land is developed in violation of the Act; providing for certain appeals; allowing for the grant of variances under certain circumstances; and generally related to forest conservation in Howard County. (edited from the description on the county website)
CR142-2019 – passed with amendments
A RESOLUTION increasing Forest Conservation fees-in-lieu.
Scenic Roads
CB63-2019 – passed as amended 12/2/2019
AN ACT amending the Howard County Code by altering the requirements for a certain buffer between a road and a new major subdivision that is located along a Scenic Road; altering a certain approval process for a major subdivision that abuts or adjoins a scenic road; and generally relating to Scenic Roads
Smarter Growth Alliance for Howard County 