July 2020
- Partially in response to a letter from LWV Baltimore County Presidents, Camille Wheeler and Theresa Lawler, Baltimore County Board of Education adoped the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) school meal funding option which allow elibible schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students.
- LWV Baltimore County was requested to send one representative to help establish "the Baltimore County Adequate Facilities Ordinance (APFO) Task Force to help the County adapt to the pressure that growth places on school capacity and for the purpose of providing a predictable planning environment for the provision of public school facilities by requiring development projects to pass certain tests as a condition of development approval:” The task force will issue its findings to the County Executive and County Council by November 1st.
November 4, 2019
THE HOME ACT PASSES!
With the full support and advocacy of League of Women Voters of Baltimore County and the Baltimore County Voters for Fair Housing, the Home Act was finally passed! The HOME Act (Housing Opportunities Made Equal) addresses a difficulty that some county residents face – being turned away from rental housing solely because of the source of their income. This legislation will open housing opportunities throughout the county by giving all residents – including those with Housing Choice Vouchers – a fair chance to have their rental applications considered. It does not prevent landlords from verifying applicants’ incomes or checking their rental histories. For working families, it reduces the time it now takes to find housing and make it easier to move closer to work.
Read our testimony from the October 27, 2019 County Council Meeting.
2018
LWV Baltimore County drives the issue of an elected Board of Education
The Education Committee spent almost two years interviewing teachers, parents, administrators, politicians, former school board members, union members, people of color, the president of the Montgomery County Board of Education—the oldest “elected” county board-- along with other presidents of both appointed and elected boards. In 2010 the Education Committee compiled the information and shared it with the membership along with the pros and cons of elected, appointed and hybrid boards of education. Consensus meetings were held and LWVBC adopted a position in favor of a hybrid Board of Education—part- elected, part- appointed. It was felt that having some members of the Board elected would force the Board to be more transparent and communicative. On February 9th, 2011, LWVBC Board of Directors approved a consensus in favor of changing the Baltimore County League of Women Voters’ Board of Education support position from that of an appointed Board to that of a hybrid Board.
Finally in a “cliff-hanger” meeting with the Baltimore County delegation, our coalition of advocates agreed to accept a hybrid bill with 7 board of education members being elected, one from each county council district, and 4 being appointed by the Governor from a list submitted to him of candidates who had been vetted by a special Baltimore County School Board Nominating Commission comprised of members appointed by various stakeholder groups, LWVBC being among them. The Commission was to ensure that the Governor’s appointments were qualified candidates and that they represented the diversity of the County. Finally HB384/SB290 was passed in the 2014 legislative session. In 2016 HB88 was passed that refined some of the provisions of the original bill. HB384/SB290 set the first Board of Education election for November of 2018. Thus given the terms of the legislation, the first Baltimore County Hybrid Board of Education was not seated until December of 2018.
The full history can be read here.
Chairpersons of the Education Committee over this time period were Aurelia Burt, Whitty Cunninggim, Jessa Goldberg, Becky Rigger, Judy Miller