Early Voting has Begun!

Early Voting has begun! The early voting period last from today until Thursday March 24th.

You can vote between 10 AM and 8 PM. Here are the 5 polling stations in Montgomery County:

Bauer Drive Community Recreation Center
14625 Bauer Drive

Rockville, MD 20853

Germantown Community Recreation Center
18905 Kingsview Road
Germantown, MD 20874

Marilyn Praisner Community Center
14906 Old Columbia Pike
Burtonsville, MD 20866

Executive Office Building
101 Monroe Street
Rockville, MD 20850

Silver Spring Civic Building
8525 Fenton Street
Silver Spring, MD 20910

BOE Redistricting Plan in Annapolis now.

From the Montgomery Delegation website.

Sponsor: Chairs on behalf of Montgomery County Board of Education

MC 1-11SS
Montgomery County - Board of Education Residence Districts - Redistricting Plan

Read the bill here.

For the purpose of altering the boundaries of the residence districts for the Montgomery County Board of Education; repealing a provision of law relating to the date when certain reapportioned districts become effective; making this Act an emergency measure; and generally relating to the residence districts for the Montgomery County Board of Education.

Board of Education Redistricting

In Montgomery County, a Board of Education district means a geographic area in which an elected member of the Board must live. In Montgomery County there are five resident-district members and two at-large members of the Board; however, all Board members are elected by the county as a whole.

According to Maryland state law, the five Montgomery County Board of Education residency districts must be redrawn after each decennial (10 year) census to make sure that the districts are “substantially equal in population”. The 2010 Census revealed that over the last decade, the population of Montgomery County increased 11.3 percent and that the boundaries of the five Board of Education districts needed to be redrawn. The Maryland General Assembly, at the request of the Montgomery County Delegation, must enact legislation during the upcoming 2011 special session to redraw the districts so that they can be in place for the April 2012 primary and November 2012 general elections.

On August 24, 2011 the Board unanimously voted to approve a RESOLUTION to recommend a redistricting plan to the Montgomery County Delegation that both establishes districts substantially equal in population and allows for anticipated growth.

Local Action:
9/15/11 - Joint Montgomery County House & Senate Delegation Public Hearing
4:00 p.m., 3rd Floor Hearing Room, Stella Werner Council Office Bldg., Rockville

Mont. County Short 2 Board of Ed. Members!

Why is Montgomery County short 2 Board of Education members?

In Maryland, counties with over 100,000 public school students are to have 9 elected Board of Education members, EXCEPT IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY where there are only 7 elected Board of Education members. As Montgomery County's public school population grows, why is our Board of Education missing 2 members that all other counties in Maryland would have if their enrollment was this size?

EDUCATION  
DIVISION II.  ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION  
TITLE 3.  ESTABLISHMENT OF COUNTY BOARDS OF EDUCATION  
SUBTITLE 1.  GENERAL PROVISIONS  
PART I.  BOARDS ESTABLISHED
Md. EDUCATION Code Ann. § 3-105  (2011)
§ 3-105. Composition of county board 

...
(c) School system with between 50,000 and 100,000 students. -- If a county school system has an enrollment of 50,000 students or more but less than 100,000 students, the county board shall have seven members.

(d) School system with over 100,000 students. -- If a county school system has an enrollment of 100,000 students or more, the county board shall have nine members except as provided in § 3-901 of this title for Montgomery County.

...