District and Prince George’s County Councils Meet to Discuss Cross-Border Issues

On Tuesday, September 15th, the Councils of both the District of Columbia and Prince George’s County came together in Upper Marlboro for a rare joint meeting on cross-border issues.

The groundwork for this meeting was laid during past cooperation through inter-jurisdictional organizations, such as the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, as well as the coordinated, three-jurisdiction (DC, Prince George’s County, and Montgomery County) increase in the minimum wage.

Following introductions of the members and their specific geographic and issue-area jurisdictions, the two Councils proceeded to discussions of more substantive matters. Public safety was discussed at length, including conversations regarding gun laws, all-terrain vehicles, body-worn cameras, redaction of Freedom of Information Act-obtained police video, bail laws, and prison work release.

The second topic of discussion was transportation. Both sets of Councilmembers agreed that the trip between their jurisdictions via car had grown longer and less pleasant in the past decade. The Councilmembers also agreed that both jurisdictions’ efforts to encourage alternate modes of transportation had been successful but needed to be expanded. The balance between car and non-car modes was also discussed extensively, with opinions expressed on both sides of the issue.

Other topics on the joint meeting’s agenda, including economic development and affordable housing/homelessness, were not addressed due to limited time availability.

After a resolution of commendation and thanks was presented by the Prince George’s County Council to its District counterpart, the chairs of the two organizations agreed to hold another joint meeting, this time in the District, in the late fall or early winter.