Submitted by: Laura Reams
Submitting Department: City Clerk
Agenda Section: Action
Item Title:
title
Adoption of FY24 Legislative Agenda
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Suggested Action:
recommendation
I move that the Mayor and Council adopt the following legislative and bond bill priorities to be presented at a Joint District 22 Legislative Dinner on November 28, 2023.
Legislative Priorities:
• Affordable Housing
• Environmental Sustainability
• Grants/Programs for Recruitment & Retention of Police Officers
• Infrastructure & State Rd Improvements
• Juvenile Justice Reform
• Mental Health & Addiction Support
• Regional Economic Development & Growth
Bond Bill Priorities:
Communications & Technology for Public Safety Headquarters: Funding Request - $2.0M
Stormwater Mitigation & Repairs at City Municipal Building: Funding Request - $550K
Environmental Depot: Funding Request - $650K
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Summary Background:
The District 22 municipalities will host the first ever joint legislative dinner on November 28th, at 5:30 pm to discuss their legislative priorities.
Below is the list of our legislative priorities and bond bill priorities that Mayor Croslin will brief. This list is based on the recent work of the City Council.
Proposed Legislative Priorities: These items will be presented as joint priorities for all District 22 municipalities. They are listed in alphabetical order.
• Affordable Housing includes consideration of bills for stabilizing rent, live where work and tax incentives, and development standards.
• Environmental Sustainability (Clean water, stormwater, climate change, CPTED)
• Grants/Programs for Recruitment & Retention of Police Officers
• Infrastructure & state roadway improvements (East West Hwy/MD 410; MD 208/Hamilton St)
• Juvenile Justice Reform - greater investment in juvenile diversion programs.
• Mental Health & Addiction Support (stabilization center, education funding set asides)
• Regional Economic Development & Growth (Attracting Businesses)
Proposed Bond Bill Priorities:
• Communications & Technology for Public Safety Headquarters: The new $19M Hyattsville Police and Public Safety Headquarters is expected to be completed next year. The facility will include a sally port, holding cells, a state-of-the-art training and wellness center, Communications Center (CC) and an Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The City budgeted $500K for the CC and EOC upgrades, however, due to inflation, supply and material costs the new estimate is approximately $2M. The costs includes hardware and software computers, consoles, telephone and radio systems, antennas, building wiring and labor. An upgraded and compatible communications operation is essential to public safety and interoperability with the County and surrounding municipalities.
o Funding Request: $2.0M
• Stormwater Mitigation & Repairs at City Municipal Building: The municipal building façade has significant flood and storm water infiltration of groundwater into the first floor of the building and the elevator shaft. The flooding is causing significant damage to the building façade and will continue causing deterioration to the first floor. Once the police relocate, the staff which has increased to support our growing population will need to expand and use additional areas of the municipal building.
o Funding Request: $550K
• Environmental Depot: The City is working on the development of an environmental depot, which will provide regional support to residents in surrounding municipalities allowing them to divert waste from the landfill. The environmental depot will be a resource to collect and store items such as mattresses, styrofoam/packing materials, and other items that can be recycled or repurposed but frequently end up in a landfill due to a lack of disposal options. The model depot will allow other municipalities to educate and participate in waste diversion programs.
o Funding Request $650K
Bond Bill Background: Funds can be used for capital projects (land/structures). The amount and type of projects funded by the General Assembly is limited - In some years, the amount requested exceeded 10 times the available resources. Thus, eligibility is heavily scrutinized to ensure that funds will be expended for projects that have a useful life of 15 years.
Next Steps:
Adoption of legislative agenda and presentation of the agenda at the joint legislative dinner meeting.
Fiscal Impact:
N/A
City Administrator Comments:
Recommend support.
Community Engagement:
N/A
Strategic Goals:
Goal 2 - Ensure the Long-Term Economic Viability of the City
Legal Review Required?
N/A