Note: This is a SUMMARY of the Commissioners Meeting for the purposes of a Press Release. These are not the actual minutes of the meeting.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NEWS
CONTACT: NORMAN BASSETT RELEASE
240-313-2130

Review of Actions Taken in the Washington County
Board of County Commissioners Meeting
October 21, 2003.

COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS AND COMMENTS
Commissioner John Munson reported on a recent meeting of the Agricultural Education Center Board of Directors. That Board is putting together a marketing committee to increase usage of the facility, Munson said. The Rural Heritage Museum will hold an open house on December 13th and 14th, Munson reported.
Commissioner Dori Nipps brought an issue involving Hagerstown Regional Airport’s expansion plan before the Board. Using soil from the County Landfill cell construction in the runway project will save millions of dollars, but the airport will not need the dirt until 2005. Cost of reengineering the airport plan to allow for earlier use of the 1.1 million yards of fill material will cost between $50,000 and $75,000. If the fill dirt had to be moved twice, the cost would be over $2 million. Nipps requested use of $70,000.00 from the Commissioners’ Contingency Fund to cover the reengineering costs. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.
Commissioner Jim Kercheval reported on a recent meeting of the Economic Development Commission that discussed a proposed request from the City of Hagerstown for $350,000.00 to support a new parking deck downtown. The Black Rock Golf Course Board ’s recent meeting discussed the appearance by the Black Rock Team in the Buick National Tournament. That team came in 17th in the nation and was seen on the Golf network, Kercheval said. Hurricane Isabel caused damage to the maintenance building and other structures at the course, and a request was made to draw $10,000.00 from the Howard trust funds to pay for the needed capital improvements including two roofs and a heat pump. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

INTRODUCTION OF NEW EMPLOYEES
Human Resources Administrator Dee Hawbaker brought three new employees before the Board for introduction. Alan Crawford has been hired as a Police Communications Operator I by the Sheriff's Department. Stoyan Russell has taken the position of Emergency Planner I in the Department of Emergency Services. Alicia Heil is the new Office Associate III at the Highway Department.

PRESENTATION OF AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Director of Budget and Finance Debra Bastian and Financial Advisor Mike Manspeaker brought the Audited Financial Statements for June 30, 2003 before the Board for review and approval. The report contained a management discussion and analysis, government-wide statements, fund statements, footnotes and required supplementary information. Manspeaker told the Board that the County’s audit was clean and no problems were noted with record keeping systems. Because of changes in auditing standards, additional procedures were utilized this year, Manspeaker said. The County ended the fiscal year with a General Fund surplus of $2.8 million, helped by a late contribution of $1.5 million in income tax revenue. That sum helped offset an earlier income tax shortfall of around $1 million. Property taxes were $1.2 million over budgeted amounts, recordation taxes were $1.8 million over budget and County departmental expenditures were $900,000 below budget anticipation. The Water Quality Fund showed significant improvement during the fiscal year, and other proprietary funds remained healthy, Manspeaker reported. Commissioners’ President Greg Snook commended Budget and Finance and all County staff for another good fiscal year, and cited the clean audit and General Fund Surplus.

PUBLIC HEARING: MODIFICATION OF JOINT SEWER SERVICE FEE
Department of Water Quality Director Greg Murray brought this request, for rescinding and reinstating of certain allocation fees relating to joint sewer service with the City of Hagerstown, to public hearing. Murray told the Board that the allocation reduction in certain areas is a result of the flow agreement with the City. Currently that fee is $2,800.00, and Murray is suggesting that the fee be reduced to $1,800 with a $300 per Equivalent Dwelling Unit construction reserve fee. In April of 2000, the Board adopted a three-year plan for allocation fee increases, based on financial targets derived from the Water and Sewer rate model that would have raised fees from 2001-2003 to achieve necessary financial targets. Allocation fees were set jointly, based on the expectation that the City would sign the joint flow agreement. When that did not take place, the County had to revert to the original, higher, allocation fees. Since resolution of the Flow Transfer Agreement has taken place, it is possible to return to the lower fees as set by the previous agreement. In the joint service areas, customers will pay an $1,800 County allocation fee plus the $300 reserve fee, plus City hookup charges of $1,800 for a total of $3,900.00 Total cost to the consumer will drop by $100 Murray said, and told the Board that the change will generate about $146,000 per year. Developer Dominic Perini appeared in favor of the change, and Engineer Gerald Cump asked if there were any differences in charges between gravity and pump station flow. A motion to support the changes was approved by unanimous vote.

DEPARTMENT OF WATER QUALITY WIRELESS INFRASTRUCTURE
Murray also brought this matter to the Board, requesting an upgrade to the SCADA wireless communications system that monitors water quality in the County. Murray requested a shift in project priorities in order to utilize $300,000 for the upgrade that is part of the 5-year Capital Improvement Project budget, satisfying a new regulation for infrastructure security and taking advantage of State contract pricing. Funds are available within existing budgets and Cash reserves, Murray said, and the project would be moved up from Fiscal Years 05 and 06, saving about 25% of project costs. Improvements would be seen in high-speed wireless data transfer without the need for leased lines, leading to savings of $50,000 per year, Murray said. The system also provides increased security for infrastructure due to planned power backup and in-house management. The Water Quality Advisory Commission and County staff have given approval of the project. A budget transfer would be required, and the measure was approved by unanimous vote.

DISCUSSION OF MORATORIUM
Interim Director of Planning and Community Development Stave Goodrich brought this matter before the Board, requesting definitive action to continue the Moratorium on construction of large subdivisions, or allow it to expire. Action on the deadline for 8 exempted subdivision applications should also be taken, Goodrich said. Last year at this time the Board enacted the moratorium on developments larger than 5 lots outside the Urban Growth Area. It was expected that the comprehensive rezoning of the County would be significantly complete by the time the moratorium was set to expire, but that schedule has been delayed due to citizen concern and other factors. If the County allowed the moratorium to expire, then an increase in activity is expected that could defeat the purpose of the original moratorium. In addition, 8 developments had received preliminary consultation prior to the moratorium effective date and were "grandfathered". Preliminary subdivision approval was to have taken place by October 31st, and 5 out of the 8 could be affected if an extension were granted. Commissioner John Munson made a motion to let the moratorium expire, which died for a lack of a second. Commissioner Wivell made a motion to extend the moratorium for one year, with a review at the end of 6 months, to allow time for further work on rural rezoning. The measure was approved by a 4-1 vote with Commissioner Munson voting “no”.

CITIZENS PARTICIPATION
Each week the Board of County Commissioners sets aside time to hear from citizens of Washington County on matters of importance to the community.
Jim Laird of Citizens for the Protection of Washington County (CPWC) appeared in support of the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance update on schools, to take place later in the day. Laird said developers should pay for schools, but raised a caution that municipalities might not collect the funds for construction occurring inside town growth areas.
Gaylon Long of the Washington County Farm Bureau and Chuck Ernst of Citizens to Protect Rights (CPR) told the Board that a document of common positions between the CPR and CPWC has been developed and will be presented to the Board with recommendations at a later date.
Mike Harsh of Williamsport, representing the Washington County Higher Education Association requested Commissioners’ support for a change in the state law to allow his group to “meet and confer” with the Hagerstown Community College Board. This action could lead to collective bargaining by 62 of the 63 full-time professors at the College. Commissioners’ President Greg Snook said that the issue would be discussed later in the agenda under Legislative Requests.
Debbie Turpin of the Washington County Home Builders’ Association thanked the Board for that group’s inclusion in negotiations leading to the proposed Street Acceptance Policy and said that HBA would not object to the policy’s adoption.

PROPOSED REVISIONS TO THE ADEQUATE PUBLIC FACILITIES ORDINANCE
Public Works Director Gary Rohrer and Interim Planning Director Steve Goodrich brought a draft of proposed revisions to the Adequate Public Facilities ordinance before the Board for approval. The section deals with School Capacity, and clarifies language dealing with adequate capacity and how it is measured. The provisions also protect the Board's right to limit the number of building permits in school districts, based on recommendations from the Planning Commission. The current APFO does not count students from developments that have been proposed, or those developments for which approval has been granted, but construction has yet to begin. The state rates each school as to the maximum number of students it can serve. The ideal would be for each school to have 85% of listed capacity, to allow for growth and student population turnover throughout the year. Currently, Washington County's Elementary Schools have about 8900 students enrolled, and that figure has increased by about 300 pupils per year over a three year period. Proposed amendments to the APFO would require developers to pay a portion of the cost for classroom space if proposed subdivisions increased the enrollment above the 85% level. If the number of students reached 105% of enrollment, housing permits could be suspended for those areas causing the overages. On September 30th the Board reached consensus that the date of adoption of the ordinance would be the limit of any grandfathering for those lots already recorded. However, major subdivisions, those containing greater than 5 lots, would not be grandfathered. As regards school capacity, several exemptions contained in the current ordinance were discussed. Exemptions to be left in the ordinance included dealing with new development for non-residential uses, developments that are restricted to elderly citizens according to applicable federal regulations, and new developments of retirement communities. For school capacity purposes, an exemption for subdivision of a tract of land for an immediate family member would be removed from the ordinance. The draft also removes an appeal process that could have negative impact on school adequacy. Purpose for the revisions is to ensure that new growth and development will make fair and equitable contributions to the added school facilities that will become necessary. The requirements would add $6,500.00 to the cost of a new home in Washington County. The draft was discussed with some language clarification requested, and a motion to take the draft to Public Hearing on Monday, October 27, 2003 at 7:00 p.m. in Court Room #1 of the Washington County Court House, 95 West Washington Street in Hagerstown was approved by unanimous vote.

LEGISLATIVE PROPOSAL WORKSHOP
County Attorney Richard Douglas brought this matter before the Board. Each year the County develops a list of requests for legislation to be included in the coming year's law making session in Annapolis. Items are suggested by staff and Commissioners, but must be reviewed and approved by the Board, and may face review several times before the legislature convenes in January. Items asking for direct funding included the runway extension project , with a request for $8 million in increments, to lessen the cost of financing over the next 3 fiscal years. Support for a bond bill for a central booking facility wasa requested by Sheriff Mades. The Board wanted more information on this item and a written plan in place before taking it to the legislature. Support for a fifth Circuit Court judge was given. Renovations for a fifth courtroom are underway at the County Courthouse. Support for a new parking deck for the downtown Arts & Entertainment District was requested. Commissioners' President Snook said that the City is working on a prioritization of requests for county support . A request was made to reinstate Highway User Revenues (“HUR”) that were removed during fiscal year 2004, and are also to be removed during fiscal year 2005. The delegation will be reminded that the funds are only supposed to be cut for those two fiscal years. Requests for legislative action include addition of a second deputy state’s attorney, which would require an amendment of state law. The State’s Attorney is not asking for a new attorney, but would create the new deputy position from one of the existing assistant positions. The Board supported that request. Every four years the county can request increases in Bond authorization amounts allowed under state law. The last such legislation was secured in 1999 for $50 million. Inclusion of flexible language may also allow the County to purchase agricultural easements should the Commissioners desire to do so in the future. The Board supported the measure. The Gaming Office sought several items for legislative action. The Board supported requiring the Board of License Commissioners, the Liquor Board, not to issue a license to an applicant who has outstanding gaming proceeds, payments or fines. The Commissioners wanted more information before supporting establishment of an annual fee for non-profit bingo permits. The Board did not support increasing the penalty for operating amusement devices in Washington County without the required permit from $500 to $1500. Support was given to a stipulation that a wholesale operator’s license not be held by the holder of a tip jar operator’s license or certain related parties, or an association of tip jar operators. Those provisions would incorporate into the gaming statute the amendments to the regulations made by the Commissioners earlier this year. The Board did not support Water and Sewer Debt Reduction Fund elimination in FY 2004 as the fund is scheduled to be self-supporting by 2009. The Board of Education had requested bonding authority for capital construction of school facilities. The measure was not supported by the Commissioners. Proposed legislation to lengthen the time a school bus may operate from twelve years to fifteen years was supported. Revisiting an increase in marriage license fees to fund domestic violence programs at CASA was not supported because of similar action taken two years ago The Commissioners wanted more information on the Higher Education Association's efforts leading to collective bargaining for HCC professors, and on collective bargaining rights for Sheriff’s deputies citing legal questions in both instances.

INMATE PRE-TRIAL PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION
County Sheriff Charles Mades brought this grant award and acceptance before the Board for approval. The Inmate Pre-Trial program from the Governor's Office of Crime Control and Prevention brings in $17,587.00 and there is a County Match of $5,862.00. Funds support additional, more advanced and broader range of drug testing, allows for purchase of partitions for office renovation, and training for program staff. The 25% matching funds are included in the Detention Center's existing fiscal year budget. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

CONTRACT AWARD: RETIREMENT PLAN INVESTMENT SERVICES
County Purchasing Agent Karen Luther and Jon S. Ketzner, Director of Consulting Services for CBIZ Benefits and Insurance Services, the County’s Contracted Provider for Record-Keeping and Actuarial Services, brought this award before the Board for approval. Recommended low bidder for investment services to the County Retirement Plan is Mercantile Safe Deposit & Trust of Baltimore, Maryland based on a sliding fee schedule and hourly rates for additional work not included in the Scope of Required Services. The minimum amount would be $20,000, and the bid would be lower than that currently being charged.. Based on assets of $27.2 million at the time of distribution of the Request for Proposal, the annual fee to Mercantile would be $65,800. Other agencies will also be able to take advantage of contract. The City of Hagerstown and the Western Maryland Consortium are interested in contracting with the selected investment services provider for investing the pension funds of their entities that would significantly reduce their investment services fees. Fees are based on the market value of the assets under management at the end of each calendar or fiscal quarter and are charged in arrears. The quarterly fee is calculated by applying the fee schedule to the total market value of the assets and then taking one-quarter of the total as the quarterly fee. The contract will be for a 1-year period, with an option by the County to renew for up to four 4 additional consecutive one 1-year periods. The fee for providing these services by the County’s present contractor, is calculated on a flat fee arrangement of .35%. With award of the contract to Mercantile Safe Deposit & Trust, the County’s retirement fund would benefit from a reduction in investment services fees. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

PROPOSED CHARGE IN ADDITION TO 9-1-1 TELEPHONE FEE
Chief of 9-1-1 Communications Bardona Woods and Budget and Finance Director Debra Bastian brought this issue to Public Hearing on September 30th. Under changes in state law, Washington County can impose an additional charge to the existing 9-1-1 fee reflected on monthly phone bills. The additional fee would be added to current bills for switched local exchange service, for Commercial Mobile Radio Service or other 9-1-1 accessible service. The current surcharge is 50 cents per month, and the additional charge may not exceed 75 cents. Amounts generated can only be used to supplement 9-1-1 maintenance or operating costs and cannot be used to offset current spending. The charge would apply to cell phones as well as wired telephones, and would be used primarily for an enhanced system that would enable 9-1-1 dispatch operators to locate cell phone callers. Bastian said that if the increases were put into place, the 9-1-1 operation's impact on the General Fund budget would be reduced by about $67,500 for the current fiscal year. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

BID AWARD: ROOF REPLACEMENT HAGERSTOWN REGIONAL AIRPORT HANGAR
County Buyer Vicky McKenzie brought this request before the Board, to award a contract for re-roofing T-Hangar #1 at Hagerstown Regional Airport to Myers Building Systems of Clear Spring in the amount of $29,088.00. The original roof was installed in 1967 and a sealant material applied about 10 years ago. Patching has taken place over the years, but the roof is weak and spongy, and a potential exists for partial collapse. The measure was approved by unanimous vote.

STREET ACCEPTANCE POLICY
Director of Public Works Gary Rohrer requested that the Board adopt the proposed revision to the 30-year old County Street Acceptance Policy. Public Works has been working with the Homebuilders Association (HBA) to revise this policy and increased subdivision activity in the County is driving this action. The name of the policy would be changed to "Construction of Subdivision Infrastructure for Acceptance and Ownership by Washington County". Revisions would include adding a quality control element to provide inspection of materials and workmanship at various times throughout the project, performed by a licensed professional, paid for by the developer. The designer would be responsible for producing "as-built" drawings on completion of the project for future use by the County. The document would also provide an acceptance and appeal process that would not need Board involvement. An agreement between the developer and the County would be included to specifically define conditions for each subdivision inspection and acceptance project. Rohrer asked for implementation of the policy on December 1st for all site plans that have not received preliminary approval by the Engineering Department. A number of minor editorial changes were recommended, and appeals would be heard by the Board of County Commissioners. The policy was accepted, with a provision for review after a one-year period, by unanimous vote.

YOUTH OF THE MONTH
Asya Brown of Clear Spring Middle School was selected as Youth of the Month for September 2003, by the Washington County Community Partnership. (See Photo) An eighth-grade student, Asya has been on the honor roll her entire school career. Asya is an active member in her church and has performed in the Christmas plays for the past eight years. Asya has many interests and has been cited for many awards both at school and in the community. In addition, she has been a member of the Clear Spring Destination Imagination team for three years and is currently taking part in the drama club at school. Asya has played soccer since she was five years old and also practices karate. Asya has only missed two days of middle school and participated and graduated from the D.A.R.E. program. She has also received stars awards for her performances in her classes. Clear Spring Assistant Principal Earl Meagher notes “Asya is a kind person to everyone she knows. As her counselor, it has been a pleasure to have Asya at Clear Spring Middle School. She is well liked by her teachers and classmates. She is also a very motivated student.” In presenting the award, Commissioners' President Greg Snook said that Asya's academic accomplishments, leadership and extra-curricular activities have shown her to be a superior role model for all youth in Washington County.

The Board toured Softrac America, a literature and promotional product fulfillment company, which has expanded its operations with the lease of 40,000 square feet in the Merritt Building on Insurance Way.