According to a July 17, 2025 opinion by the Maryland Open Meetings Compliance Board, Radio Free Hub City’s complaint led to a finding that the Washington County Board of County Commissioners failed Maryland’s Open Meetings Act when it labeled a public vote on a $100,000 business incentive under the vague label “Staff Comments.” While the board did not knowingly omit the vote itself, the Compliance Board ruled that such a generic description violated § 3-302.1(a)(1) by denying residents fair notice of the action.
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On May 8, 2025, the commissioners’ special meeting agenda listed only a closed session on a business location proposal and, upon reconvening, an open-session item called “Staff Comments” . After closing, staff presented a plan to match a $1 million Commerce Department loan with $100,000 from the Hotel Rental Tax Fund, and the board approved it 4-0. Radio Free Hub City argued that this substantial use of taxpayer funds deserved clear advance notice; the board maintained it only decided to conduct the vote during closed session, so it did not know to include it on the agenda for holding the open vote.
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The Compliance Board agreed the commissioners could not have foreseen the vote when first issuing the agenda, so there was no breach in failing to list it. However, prior rulings require agenda descriptions to be sufficiently detailed to help the public decide whether to attend. Labeling a substantial financial decision merely “Staff Comments” fell short, especially where no emergency exception applied . Going forward, Washington County must use more descriptive language—e.g., “Staff Presentation on Financial Incentive”—so citizens can anticipate when expenditures will be discussed and possibly voted on.
At the very next open meeting after the Open Meetings Compliance Board issues its opinion, a member of the Washington County Board of County Commissioners must publicly announce that a violation occurred and orally summarize the Board’s opinion explaining the violation, in accordance with Maryland law. Additionally, the Commissioners must sign a copy of the opinion and return the signed copy to the OMCB, in accordance with § 3-211.
Article by multiple contributors, based upon information from the Maryland Open Meetings Compliance Board and Maryland General Provisions Code § 3-211
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