FREDERICK, Md. – Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner announced her legislative priorities for the upcoming session of the Maryland General Assembly. She will request two pieces of legislation, one to increase transparency and fairness for homebuyers in Frederick County and the other to protect some county employees from identity theft.
“My proposals ensure transparency and protect consumers, as well as our hard-working public servants,” Executive Gardner said Friday.
Executive Gardner’s first bill would prohibit builders and developers in Frederick County from adding fees for water and sewer hookups and other infrastructure costs as special assessments separate from the purchase price of the house. The practice of placing liens on homes to pay for these costs over many years can surprise purchasers at settlement by adding thousands of dollars onto the final purchase price.
Her second proposed piece of legislation would prohibit disclosure of some personal financial information for some Frederick County employees. The measure is in response to data mining companies selling this information, which puts employees at risk of identity theft. The bill still allows for transparency and ensures the public’s right to know how tax dollars are being spent by providing a salary range, rather than the exact salary, of most public employees. Exact salaries would still be disclosed for division directors and those employees who are hired directly by the County Executive and the County Council.
During Friday’s briefing, the Executive also outlined requests from the County Council and community organizations for items to include in the 2021 legislative package. Those requests can be found on the County’s website at www.FrederickCountyMD.gov/Legislative. The public is invited to comment on any of the proposals, or suggest additional topics for consideration, during a virtual town hall meeting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 8. The meeting will be televised live on FCG TV, cable channel 19 and 1085, and webcast at FrederickCountyMD.gov/LegislativeTownHall.
For more information, contact Government Affairs Director Joy Schaefer at 301-600-1621 or via e-mail at jschaefer@FrederickCountyMD.gov.