Valerie Ervin Concludes One Year as President of the Montgomery County Council

ROCKVILLE, Md., Dec. 6 -- Montgomery County issued the following council news release:

Montgomery County Councilmember Valerie Ervin today concluded her one-year term as president of the Council. The complete text of her remarks reflecting upon the past year are as follows:

As I reflected on what I wanted to say today, I began thinking about what it has meant to be the President of the Montgomery County Council. For me it was about focusing on the kind of future we want for Montgomery County, standing up for what we believe in, and the importance of teamwork.

Last year, when I took the gavel as Council President, I promised to do my best to ensure that this Council would work together to get back to basics, focus on disciplined governing, and implement long-term structural changes in the interest of our community. I am proud to say that we accomplished all of these goals together.

The challenges this Council faced were focused on pocket-book economics and on maintaining the quality of life that our residents expect and deserve. In my estimation, we made the tough decisions that will keep this County on the course of greatness that has helped to determine why nearly a million people have chosen to live here, and why so many who are drawn to innovation and opportunity choose to work here.

Looking back over the past year, I am humbled by the support I received from my colleagues, and I am proud that this Council cast multiple unanimous votes on difficult issues. Council Vice President Roger Berliner's consistent search for common ground served this Council well this year, and I truly appreciate his service as the Council's vice president.

Some common themes emerged in our decision-making this year. We preserved essential services for our residents; attempted to do what was fair for employees and taxpayers; and took a long-term approach to protect our fiscal future. We took steps to preserve our world-class school system, to maintain safe neighborhoods, and to create economic opportunities to grow our tax base.

One of our biggest accomplishments was developing a "fiscal protection package" where we controlled growth in debt service and compensation costs, funded future employee obligations in a consolidated trust for retiree health benefit pre-funding across agencies, and strengthened County reserves.

This Council also took decisive action on economic development and land use issues to enhance the County's position as a leader in the region. We celebrated the opening of the Fillmore in Silver Spring, broke ground on the mixed-use Safeway Project in Wheaton, and kicked-off stage one development at White Flint.

We voted for several economic development assistance packages including: grants to Choice Hotels International and Duball; assistance for Westfield; and most importantly a conditional grant over 15 years for Health and Human Services to retain 3,000 federal workers. In addition, we approved the initial funding for the newly established Biotechnology Investment Incentive Tax Credit Supplement Program. All of these actions help to leverage funding from the state for these projects.

This Council also recently passed the Wheaton Sector Plan. We hope that this plan will put Wheaton on the map as a destination for retail, housing and office uses. Situated on a metro line, this area is ripe for revitalization in the central business district. Our goal is to revitalize this area for community focused shopping, office uses and government activities.

Finally, this Council approved the CR Zone which will greatly influence the scope of future development near Metrorail stations. These changes will encourage more urbanized, mixed-use development in those areas, allowing neighborhoods to generate retail, restaurants, services, entertainment and offices near public transportation.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone on the Council's staff. They are the backbone of this institution and their commitment to upholding the Council was never more evident than this year.

From the OLO report on the long-term structural budget deficit led by Karen Orlansky, to the incredible work of Essie McGuire on the MCPS budget and maintenance of effort, we are exceptionally well served by our staff. Steve Farber, our irrepressible staff director, cares so much about this body which is evidenced by his incredible work ethic, institutional knowledge and keen insights. We couldn't have accomplished what we did this year without them. Linda Lauer, the clerk of the Council, does so much more than just keep the trains running on time. I owe her so much this year, not only for her professionalism but also because she is one of your best allies when things get tough. Mike Faden and Bob Drummer you are the best. And to the rest of the staff, I don't have time to mention each one of you by name, but just know that when I walk through the door of this building, I know that the best staff in the state resides here, and we don't thank you enough for your dedication not only to us but to the residents of Montgomery County.

And finally to my own staff, I can't imagine working as a member of this Council without my team, which is lead by Sonya Healy, my chief of staff. You all know about her amazing work ethic, her attention to detail, her professionalism and no-nonsense approach to getting things done. But behind the curtain she is a loyal friend and confidante, with a heart that is bigger than most. Thank you for putting up with me and for putting your life on hold for a year. Rich Romer, Shondell Foster, and Beth Sylvester rounded out Team Ervin this year. They gave 100 percent every day, even when I wasn't looking.

I want to close by sharing my thoughts about Sister Citizen, a book written by Melissa Harris-Perry that has given me valuable insights into my experience this year. One important part explains how perceptions can influence reality and how it is often difficult to do the right thing in the face of adversity. It is couched in the struggle that many black women face.

The author describes one World War II study "where subjects were placed in a crooked chair in a crooked room and then asked to align themselves vertically. Some perceived themselves straight only in relation to their surroundings. Some people could be tilted by as much as 35 degrees and report that they were perfectly straight, simply because they were aligned with images that were equally tilted. But not everyone did this; some managed to get themselves more or less upright regardless of how crooked the surrounding images were."

Throughout my life, I have been placed in crooked rooms, whether it is dealing with prejudice and personal attacks, organizing poor women in factories who were struggling to make ends meet, or fighting on behalf of my own children to have equal access to a quality public education.

I am proud to say that throughout all of these experiences, I have been able to stand up straight, maintain my integrity and produce positive outcomes for the future. I want to thank you for allowing me to serve you and our nearly one million residents as Council President.

December 6, 2011

Accomplishments of Montgomery County Council:

December 2010-December 2011

Unanimously approved a $4.4 billion total County operating budget for Fiscal Year 2012. The budget reflects a 2.2 percent increase over the approved budget for FY11 and includes several changes in regard to employee benefits that create "a blueprint for addressing our long-term structural deficit."

* The Council appropriated $1.951 billion in current tax-supported funds for Montgomery County Public Schools. That is $31 million, or 1.6 percent, more than was appropriated in tax-supported funds for FY11.

* Structural changes to employee group insurance and retirement benefits will save $33 million in FY12 and $273 million in FY12-17.

* The budget included reserves of 6.1 percent pursuant to the policies adopted last year to strengthen the County's reserves.

Took unanimous actions as part of a Fiscal Protection Package to make the budget sustainable in future years and protect the County's AAA bond rating. These actions led the bond rating agencies--Standard & Poor's, Fitch and Moody's--to reaffirm the AAA bond rating. See the attached list.

Unanimously decided not to adhere to the State's Maintenance of Effort requirement for school funding. See the attached statement.

Approved Bill 45-10 that created a two-tier service-connected disability retirement system for all County employees. This system is identical to the current system for employees of the Fire and Rescue Service.

Unanimously approved Bill 18-11 that modifies the scope of bargaining between the FOP and the County Executive, making it consistent with the scope of bargaining with unions representing other County employees.

Unanimously approved Bill 17-11 amending the County's Retiree Health Benefits Trust (RHB) to include trusts for the retiree health benefits for employees of MCPS and Montgomery College, thus strengthening the foundation for these benefits.

Approved Bag Tax bill. Bill 8-11 that will create a five-cent charge on each paper or plastic bag provided by a retail establishment to a customer at point of sale, pickup or delivery. The bill is intended to encourage consumers to use more reusable bags, which in turn could lead to fewer bags littering the environment.

Led efforts to require electric provider Pepco to deliver better and more reliable service. Urged the Maryland Public Service Commission to support the establishment of strong standards that would lead to better service from the utility.

Approved Zoning Test Amendment 11-01 that adds changes to the County's Commercial/Residential Zone (CR Zone) and will greatly influence the scope of future development near Metrorail stations. The changes will encourage more urbanized, mixed-use development in those areas, allowing neighborhoods to evolve with retail, restaurants, services, entertainment, and offices near public transportation.

Wheaton Sector Plan approved. The goal is to put Wheaton on the map as a destination for retail, housing and office uses. Situated on the Metro Red Line, this area is ripe for revitalization in the central business district. The County's goal is to enhance this area for community focused shopping, finance services, and government activities.

Economic development. This year the County celebrated the opening of the Fillmore in Silver Spring, broke ground on the mixed-use Safeway Project in Wheaton, kicked-off stage one development and White Flint and broke ground on the County's Equipment and Maintenance Operations Center. The latter project begins construction of the County's Smart Growth Initiative to create an urban village near the Shady Grove Metro.

The Council voted for several economic development assistance packages. Some examples include a $2.8 million conditional grant to relocate Choice Hotels International to Rockville; a $3.1 million conditional grant to Duball to develop a mixed use project; $4 million for Westfield over the next two years; and most importantly a conditional grant of up to $19.5 million over 15 years to Health and Human Services to retain 3,000 federal workers. All of this funding helps to leverage funding from the state for these projects.

Biotechnology Investment Incentive Tax Credit Supplement Program. Approved the initial funding for the newly established Biotechnology Investment Incentive Tax Credit Supplement Program.

Suburban Hospital expansion. Unanimously approved a resolution that will permit the partial closing of Lincoln Street in Bethesda. The partial closing of the street will allow Suburban Hospital to expand its campus, which is adjacent to a residential neighborhood.

Takoma/Langley Crossroads Sector Plan underway. Hosted all-day forum in July to seek input and answer questions from residents about the plan that spans Montgomery and Prince George's counties, as well as the City of Takoma Park.

Protect workers who report fraud, waste and abuse. Unanimously approved Executive Regulation 13-10AM that amends the County Personnel Regulations to support previously approved measures that protect employees who report fraud, waste and abuse to County government officials.

Pursued BRAC funding: Efforts resulted in spring announcement that Montgomery County would obtain part of $300 million ease BRAC (Defense Base Realignment and Closure)-related congestion around the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda.

Clarksburg store closer to becoming a reality: Unanimously approved a limited amendment to the Clarksburg Master Plan that could lead to faster establishment of a grocery store in the emerging community in the northern part of the County.

New code enforcement laws designed to help protect and maintain the residential character of neighborhoods went into effect in April. These new laws deal with home-based businesses, off-street parking and paving of front yards. The new laws were based on recommendations from a Code Enforcement Work Group that reviewed a number of police, housing and zoning code issues that were causing adverse impacts and public safety issues in residential neighborhoods.

Smoking ban for common areas of multiple-family dwelling and some playgrounds. Unanimously approved a Board of Health regulation that prohibits smoking in certain common areas of multiple-family residential dwellings and certain playgrounds relating to those dwellings. The bill bans smoking within 25 feet of playground areas on privately owned property that has a primary purpose to serve the residents of more than one dwelling.

Unanimously approved revisions to the Housing Element of the County's "General Plan." The revisions make changes that will guide the development of new housing and redevelopment of existing housing over the next two decades while also seeking to protect the character of existing neighborhoods.

Enhance uses of historic properties. Unanimously approved Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 11-02 that would enhance the economic viability of historic resources by allowing historic properties to revert to their historic uses. Approval could lead to productive commercial use of the grounds of the Aspin Hill Memorial Park, a pet cemetery whose facilities have fallen into neglect.

10th Community Garden opened on King Street in Silver Spring. Joined the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), the Montgomery County Department of Parks, representatives from 7-Eleven and other community leaders for the groundbreaking of the new King Street Community Garden located at 7875 Eastern Avenue in Silver Spring.

Airstrips banned in Agricultural Reserve: The Council reaffirmed that agriculture is the preferred use in rural Montgomery County. The Council approved Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 10-15 so that paved airstrips for recreation use will not be allowed in the County's Agricultural Reserve.

Asked for review of proposed Congressional redistricting map. Seven Councilmembers joined members of the Maryland General Assembly and community leaders on Oct. 11 to request a hard look at Maryland's proposed Congressional redistricting plan.

Approved a resolution urging the Maryland General Assembly to adopt legislation that would grant all Maryland residents in-state tuition to Maryland colleges and universities regardless of their immigration status. A bill was passed by the General Assembly in April.

Miracle Field opened in South Germantown Park. Representatives of the Washington Nationals joined the August dedication of the Washington Nationals Miracle Field. The specially designed field--the only one of its kind in the region - allows children and young adults with mental and/or physical disabilities to enjoy the opportunity to safely play baseball.

Secure Communities concerns. Unanimously approved a resolution asking County public safety officials to work closely with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to ensure that when the Secure Communities program is implemented locally, the County does not experience the serious problems that have occurred in other jurisdictions, resulting in widespread mistrust of the police in immigrant communities.

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