For years, the Howard County delegation has held its public hearings on local bills and statewide issues at the George Howard Building in Ellicott City.
This year, because of scheduling conflicts, the hearing on statewide issues and two late-filed local bills is being held in Annapolis. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 21 at 7:30 p.m., in Room 218 of the Lowe House Office Building in Annapolis.
The two co-presidents of the League of Women Voters of Howard County sent a letter to the delegation this week expressing their disappointment with the hearing location, noting it is "breaking with a long tradition of holding such hearings within Howard County."
"We understand that our elected officials are busy people, but they are far from alone in that," the letter reads. "If the delegation finds it difficult to make the trip from Annapolis to Howard County for the hearing, they must understand that such a trip is much more difficult for the Howard County citizens the delegation was elected to represent."
Del. Guy Guzzone, a Columbia Democrat who serves as co-chairman of the delegation, said the location of the hearing "does not reflect a change in our public hearing policy, rather a scheduling difficulty." The delegation's unofficial policy has been to hold all public hearings in Howard County.
"We're committed to providing as much public access to the delegation as possible," Guzzone said. "We hope that there are citizens that can join us in Annapolis and regret any inconvenience."
The delegation inquired about securing the Banneker Room in the George Howard Building for three dates on which it was considering holding the hearing, but only one was available, Guzzone said. Looking at that date and two possible dates the hearing could be held in Annapolis, most delegation members said they were available Feb. 21.
Guzzone said he believes only three members were available on the date they could secure the Banneker Room.
"And out of 11, that just doesn't seem like a delegation to me," he said.
In an interview, league co-president Alice Giles said the group has always supported "making government as accessible to the citizens it serves as possible. And a hearing in Howard County is much more accessible to the public than a hearing in Annapolis. When it's in Howard County, it's easier to advertise, easier to promote."
Giles said she believes holding the hearing in Howard County is more important than choosing a night when the most lawmakers can to attend. She said hearings held in the Banneker Room can be recorded for members of the delegation and anyone else to watch later, at their convenience. The delegation's room in Annapolis is not set up to record hearings.
The Banneker Room is not available on Feb. 21 because the County Council is holding a public hearing on its legislation. Though not mentioned in the letter, Giles said having the delegation hearing and the council hearing scheduled on the same night "limits us in yet another way from being able to participate in our government."