Council moves to include municipal seat on Police Advisory Board; budget effects debated

Montgomery County council leaders told municipal representatives they are near final action on a Police Accountability Bill that will provide a designated municipal seat on the Police Advisory Board and the County's appellate body, the ACC.

"Per the recommendation of Council Member Katz, have made sure that a resident of a municipality serves on the Police Advisory Board in the Charter," Gabriel Gurnos said, describing the change as a way to recognize variations among municipal police departments.

Gurnos said the council's goal is to "vote this out by March 29" so the executive may recruit and submit names for council approval. The bill and implementation will, he said, require advertisement and recruitment work and is time-sensitive.

Council member Sydney Katz and others clarified budget numbers during the discussion. Katz said the County Executive's recommendation increases police department spending by about 4.5 percent, but she attributed a roughly 10 percent figure to negotiated salary increases for the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP): "What he was referring to was the salary increase has negotiated forward... that's up about 10%, and that the, FOP only," Katz said.

Why it matters: Municipal police departments will be directly affected by the composition and charter of accountability bodies; compensation and department-budget changes affect staffing and operations. Municipal leaders said having a seat at the table is important for addressing local law-enforcement policy differences.

Next steps: Council leaders expect to move the Police Accountability Bill through committee and the full council on an accelerated timeline and asked municipalities to encourage qualified applicants to apply when recruitment opens.