A Montgomery County Council committee meeting on Dec. 9 will include a briefing on updated Montgomery County Police Department consent search policies and a review of proposed changes to public benefits requirements for new construction projects. Additional details below courtesy Montgomery County:
“The Public Safety (PS) Committee will meet on Monday, Dec. 9 at 1 p.m. to receive a briefing about the Montgomery County Police Department’s (MCPD) policy for consent searches. The members of the PS Committee include Chair Sidney Katz and Councilmembers Dawn Luedtke and Kristin Mink.
The Planning, Housing and Parks (PHP) Committee will meet at 2 p.m. to continue its review of the Planning Department’s incentive zoning update study. The members of the PHP Committee include Chair Andrew Friedson, Council Vice President Will Jawando and Councilmember Natali Fani-González.
More detail on each agenda item is provided below.
Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) Policy for Consent Searches
Briefing: The PS Committee will receive a briefing about the MCPD policy for consent searches. A consent search occurs when a police officer obtains consent to conduct a warrantless search from a person.
On Dec. 2, MCPD released a new consent search policy. The policy changes are intended to ensure that an officer has a reasonable, articulable suspicion to request consent to search. Additionally, an officer must record the interaction on body worn camera video, use a new phone application or an alternate written form to have the person decline or approve the search and collect certain demographic and contraband information. The new policy also requires mandatory supervisory review of the consent search within five working days.
Review: The PHP Committee will continue to review the Planning Department’s incentive zoning update study, which includes recommendations designed to update the system used to evaluate new development and determine to what extent a development project must provide corresponding public amenities. The first meeting to review the study was held on Dec. 2. The update takes into consideration recent County policies and initiatives, such as Thrive Montgomery 2050, the Climate Action Plan and implementation of the County’s Racial Equity and Social Justice Act.?