Vice Chair Kagan warns proposed use of 9‑1‑1 fees for MDEM overhead risks federal funding, cites local deaths

Vice Chair Kagan told the committee the provision on page 26 of the budget is "the most shocking, disturbing, concerning, item" and said the governor’s proposal would take money from the 9‑1‑1 fund that is "only specifically supposed to go to 9‑1‑1 expenses directly to our 24 counties" and instead give it to overhead and salaries at the Maryland Department of Emergency Management (MDEM). She said the amount is about $3,200,000 per year for fiscal years 2026 and 2027 and warned: "It is shocking. It also endangers our federal funding because no federal funds go to states that ever use 911 fees for any other purpose than 911."

Kagan said she had raised the issue publicly and privately with stakeholders and urged colleagues to consider stripping the change. DLS staff, represented in the briefing by Tanya Zimmerman, said she did not have a specific update on FEMA or timing but acknowledged the provision and a separate expansion of CIF uses were related to concerns about the availability of federal support. "I don't have a specific update," Zimmerman said. "I know that this provision ... are related to concerns about the availability of federal funding, to support their operation."

Committee members asked for clarification on the statutory limits for the 9‑1‑1 fund and the potential federal consequences; DLS advised that more detail would be required and that concerns about FEMA support had been raised by members of Congress, according to the exchange in committee.

The committee recessed for a break and did not adopt budget language during the briefing.