The Montgomery County Delegation to the General Assembly will hold its Joint Priorities Hearing on Nov. 20. This is your opportunity to present issues of concern to our county delegation in Annapolis. Show up and let our legislators know that you are opposed to Governor Hogan’s plan.
We will be sending you further information about participating in this meeting as well as information for those who wish to testify. Watch for details.
When: Wednesday, November 20 at 7:00 p.m.
Where: Montgomery County Council Hearing Room (Third floor), 100 Maryland Avenue, Rockville MD
Why is this hearing important?
It is our chance to tell our legislators about the work we want them to do, such as passing bills that can become laws. For example, we can support their efforts for oversight of this project.
To date, the governor's plan to add toll lanes to I-270 has barreled along without legislative oversight. Requests for information, such as sharing the source data of their transit models, have been rejected.
How You Can Be Part of the Legislative Process
Because the legislative process is long and involved, there are lots of opportunities for all of us to take part. That means keeping informed and speaking out. Dontwiden270.org will be posting information about pending bills and how you can help influence their passage.
To be effective citizen advocates opposing this expensive boondoggle that will not relieve traffic congestion, we need to understand how Maryland’s legislative process works.
An in-depth description of the Maryland State Legislature can be found at Your State Legislature: an Overview.
Here are the basics
Maryland’s state Legislature is called the General Assembly. It has an upper chamber (Senate) and a lower chamber (House of Delegates). There are 47 population-based legislative districts. The General Assembly meets for 90 days each year, beginning in January. During this time, the legislators act on hundreds of proposed bills.
The legislative leaders—the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House— hold two of the most powerful positions in State Government. They assign legislation to committees and appoint committee members.
Much of the work takes place in the committees and their subcommittees, including several of particular interest to Dontwiden270.org:
House Committee on the Environment and Transportation and its Subcommittee on Motor Vehicles and Transportation.
House Appropriations Committee and its Subcommittee on the Environment and Transportation.
Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and its Subcommittee on Public Safety, Transportation, and Environment.
Learn more about how bills become laws in Maryland at Your State Legislature: an Overview.
Update: MDOT Road Show raises new questions
The Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) held its annual meeting on November 4 to present its six-year budget for transportation projects and programs to Montgomery County legislators. MoCo state delegates, senators, and county officials peppered the agency with questions about MDOT's $11 billion plan to expand I-495/I-270 for Luxury Lanes and its decision to nix mass transit in the state's six-year consolidated transportation plan.
For more information about the meeting, read the Citizens Against Beltway (CABE) review on the CABE Connection tab of Dontwiden270.org. This review includes important information on MDOT’s refusal to provide the public with the “origin and destination” data it's using to make decisions on its plan to expand the Beltway and I-270.
More November 4 MDOT road show coverage:
State Pulls Plug on Alternative to Lane Widening in Montgomery County
November 5, 2019, Bethesda Magazine."State’s Montgomery Co. ‘Road Show’ Goes Off the Rails"
November 5, 2019, Maryland Matters