In an unprecedented move, Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy (D) returned the budget for a revision vote before the County Council while citing numerical and clerical errors within the budget that passed in late May. These errors, which have since been corrected, mean that the Council did not officially pass a balanced budget before the June 1 deadline.
County Council Chair Krystal Oridaha (D-District 7) noted staff turnover as one of the factors leading to delays and errors in the budget process.
“Anytime you have people doing the budget for the first time, there might be things that they are learning and mistakes that they can make,” Council Chair Krystal Oriadha said following a vote to address prior errors in the budget on June 9. “We have two major spreadsheets that we use, one for the major budget and one for park and planning, and then we give it to staff and it’s a big document. They take the spreadsheets and embed it in every document.”
Councilmember Sydney Harrison (D-At Large) decried the lack of transparency and called for creating an inspector general, as most of Maryland’s other large counties have. He did not vote on the original budget, which passed 8-0.
“I am calling on my colleagues or maybe for the state to step in and put an inspector general into the Prince George’s County government that will oversee the fiduciary responsibilities of how these tax dollars are being used,” he said in an interview with NBC 4 Washington. “Anytime that you’re taking money from one agency, they’re going to suffer, right? I’m worried that this commission will be left in shambles. I’m worried about people’s jobs. They have priorities. They serve our community each and every day. What about their voice[s]?”.
Dr. Jennifer Rios, who is running for an at-large seat on the council, criticized the legislative body’s inability to pass a budget on time.
“Prince George’s County residents deserve transparency, accountability, and fiscal responsibility,” she told The Informer. “The County Council was required to pass a balanced budget by March, yet we continue to hear shifting narratives about deficits being closed while budget gaps remain unresolved.”
Park and Planning Commission Sues Prince George’s County Council
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (MNCPPC) is suing the Prince George’s County Council, alleging more than $39 million in transfers that the bi-county agency states are intended for recreational programs. The agency is seeking a judge to freeze the budget changes until further notice.
“While we made good-faith efforts to resolve this collaboratively, we need the court’s intervention to protect the public trust and ensure these resources are used as intended,” the commission said in a statement.
Prince George’s Councilmember Edward Burroughs III (D-District 8) has said that the project charges used by the council have served county youth effectively.
“There is no money that Park and Planning has, generally speaking, that does not come from Prince George’s County taxpayers,” Burroughs said. “It’s all the county’s money. It’s all the county’s resources.”
Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy has said that her legal resources will be made available to defend the county council.
“Our attorneys are vigorously defending the position of the county council,” said the Braveboy. “They have determined that the lawsuit is not valid.”
Rios noted that the transfer of MNCPPC-designated funds has been specifically prohibited in the recent state budget, signed by Gov. Wes Moore (D).
“It is unacceptable for dedicated Parks and Planning funds to be diverted to cover unrelated spending or nonprofit programs that should be funded through the county’s general budget process,” Rios continued. “These funds are legally designated for specific community purposes and should remain protected. Our residents deserve honest budgeting, public involvement, and leadership that gets it right the first time.”
