“Legislative Day No. 1” on February 17 ran smoothly and without incident for the Dorchester County Council. In the absence of Councilperson William Nichols, the rest of the members ran through a brief legislative session and approved a number of action items.
Following the consent agenda, the council witnessed a presentation in which they were asked to consider a Maryland State Retirement & Pension System conversion to incorporate correctional officers into the Correctional Officers’ Retirement System, and qualified emergency services personnel into the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System.
Among those who made comments after the presentation was Director of the Department of Corrections Don Satterfield, who mentioned that he had lost a number of officers to other counties that offered better financial benefits. The council voted unanimously to proceed with the conversion.
Next, the council moved into the legislative session. Acts were introduced that dealt with county building code infractions, the property maintenance code, the removal of obstructions at the wharves, and zoning violations.
Returning to open session, the council approved several action items. The first was the FY27-31 Airport Capital Improvement Plan, in preparation for submittal to the Federal Aviation Administration, contingent on future budget approvals.
The second item approved was a recommendation of Public Works, Recreation & Parks and Economic Development for the proposal known as “Cambridge Rails to Trails,” for the Washington Street to Woods Road project. The request was to accept the lowest bid submitted.
Third was the introduction of a resolution to approve an adoption agreement for the Maryland Association of Counties Pooled OPEB Trust Fund for the purpose of accumulating and investing assets to fund other post-retirement benefits.
Fourth was approval of potential projects to include on a FY27 Congressionally Directed Spending application that was based on staff recommendations.
Lastly, the council confirmed its approval of a request from the Department of Corrections for the emergency replacement of an HVAC unit in the male housing unit, which will be funded by the FY26 Contingency Fund.
Then, County Manager Jerry Jones and two council members urged the community to fill out the online feedback form about the county’s 2026 comprehensive plan. They emphasized that it will work better with input from the residents. The plan and feedback form will be available online until March 13.