Commissioners send proposals to delegation

Ji’Aire’s Law among items to be considered

The time for the Charles County and Southern Maryland delegation to gather in Annapolis for the state’s General Assembly session is almost here. And that means the Charles County Board of Commissioners has to soon decide what it will and will not support this coming winter.

But before they do that, they need to decide what they will send to their own delegation for review first.

The commissioners moved 16 proposals forward to be reviewed by the delegation this week. Among them were the ability for the county’s emergency services department to collectively bargain, verifying whether a work group or study has been put together for Ji’Aire’s Law and a

proposal for adding speed cameras to residential neighborhoods.

Commissioners’ President Peter Murphy (D) said the commissioner’s work session on Tuesday was not necessarily to support any specific bills, but to send them to the Charles County delegation to actually draft specific bills relating to proposals and to see if there were already bills in place pertaining to them.

“We’re not going to send up an absolute rec- ommendation on these,” Murphy said.

After the delegation creates bills, the commissioners will receive them for review once again and decide if they will support them. Charles County Delegation Chair- woman Edith Patterson (D-Charles) said having Murphy on the commission as a former delegate helps move things quick- ly in the process and will help the delegation mov- ing for ward.

There are still clarifications that need to be made on some proposals such as the one granting collective bargaining abil- ity to the department of emergency services.

Matthew Clagett, the deputy county attorney, said there is already language in the state’s annotated code that allows for charter counties to grant their emergency services department collective abilities, but the code must be changed to allow code home rule government bodies like Charles County.

The county is preparing a draft of the bill with that amendment, but it is not completed at this time. Robinson said there was a clear consensus among commissioners that they wanted to grant the department collective bar- gaining ability despite not having the specific language at the time. It can be written at a later date, he said.

“I’m not sure how to do it technically, but I support it,” he said. The commissioners voted unanimous- ly to move the bill forward to the delegation.

Commissioner Amanda Stewart (D) said at a recent town hall meeting that her residents expressed their desire to have speed cameras in their neighborhoods.

It was not until recently that this was pointed out to her, Stewart said, but the residents wanted to ensure both children and adults had safe passage throughout their neighborhoods.

“It’s a public safety issue,” she said.

There is already state legislation that specifies speed cameras are per- mitted in construction and school zones, Mur- phy said, so it may just take a modification of that bill rather than another bill entirely to per- mit speed cameras in residential settings.

Ji’Aire’s Law was supposed to have a work study throughout last year, Murphy said. Patter- son said this was a critical issue for “almost all the members of the house.”

Ji’Aire’s Law was devel- oped by Vontasha Simms, the mother of Romechia Simms who was found pushing her 3-year-old, Ji’Aire Lee, on a swing in La Plata after he died last year.

Simms said her daughter, Romechia, has an unprecedented case in the state of Maryland and does not deserve to be put in jail. Ji’Aire’s Law would allow parents who are in a “mental crisis” to have a parent, guardian or close family member gain authority to care for that person and any chil- dren they have.

Stewart said she received information that there was not a work group created for the bill. Her concern, she said, is that they need to make sure the group was created so “we know how to move forward.”

Patterson said she will get the information and consult with the delega- tion for more information on the bill.

Murphy added two more legislative proposals to the original 18. One proposal would grant local businesses a tax credit for buying local food products. This bill would affect mostly restaurants in the area looking for dif- ferent food products.

Robinson said buying local food products has become a national trend and it would encourage more restaurants doing business in Charles County to do the same.

Murphy’s other proposal permits animal shelters around the tri-county area, including St. Mary’s and Calvert counties, to fine animal owners for the care of their pets when their animals are seized.

The county has previously had to pay as much as $77,000 in its budget for the care of seized animals. Between feeding them, grooming them and other needs, the costs add up. The bill was previously considered in 2015 but did not make it out of committee.

Murphy said he is bringing it back up just in case the original bill sponsor does not again.