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Council clears amendments to county forest conservation law to conform with state law
Summary
Bill 18‑25, revising forest conservation rules (including forest mitigation banks and priority categories), passed after committee amendments removing a 1‑inch tree definition and making technical zoning alignment changes.
The Montgomery County Council approved Bill 18‑25 on final reading Sept. 16, 2025, following a Transportation and Environment Committee recommendation to enact the measure with amendments. Councilmember Glass, T&E chair, said the bill defines a solar photovoltaic facility, removes certain requirements for such facilities, adds new categories to forest‑retention priorities, reinstates forest mitigation banks, and removes “significant trees” from tree‑save plan requirements.
At committee, members removed a Planning Department‑proposed 1‑inch tree definition that staff said conformed to practice but did not strictly match state law; they also adopted a technical amendment to align the bill with recent zoning changes that replaced certain priority campus plan categories with an expedited approval plan. Councilmember Glass described the revisions as conforming county standards to the intent of state law.
The Transportation and Environment Committee reported a unanimous recommendation for enactment with the committee amendments. The council took the committee’s motion and passed the bill on roll call; the vote was unanimous. The bill’s text and committee packet include the two committee amendments described on the record.
