The Washington County Board of Commissioners moved through a series of routine and contract items at its Jan. 14 meeting and approved several fiscal and procurement actions by voice vote.

Minutes and budget adjustments
The board approved the minutes for previous meetings and a technical FY25 budgeting adjustment for the Washington County Board of Education. The Nov. 20, 2024 minutes were approved with three commissioners recorded as present for that meeting; the Dec. 10, 2024 minutes were approved with a unanimous voice vote. Commissioners also approved a cross‑category adjustment relating to an earlier appropriation to the Board of Education for security initiatives and the purchase of three buses.

Grants and procurement
The board voted to accept a Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts grant to Washington County Circuit Court to support multiple courthouse security projects, including access control, alarm notification upgrades, intercom systems and security film (grant amount presented at the meeting: $774,657.94). The Office of Grant Management said there are no unusual grant conditions.

Separately the board authorized a sole‑source procurement (PUR 1723) for Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) cloud enterprise licensing for county GIS operations; staff said the annual purchase amount for the current year is $113,300 and the three‑year agreement runs through Jan. 3, 2026. Commissioners also approved an intergovernmental cooperative purchase to buy one 2025 Ford F‑550 chassis truck from Apple Ford (contract leveraged through Baltimore County) for $89,175.30 and directed that the replaced 1990 Chevrolet be offered for sale on GovDeals.com.

Other approvals and actions
The board accepted the Division of Emergency Services'recommended distribution of FY2025 Senator William H. Amos Fire Rescue and Ambulance Fund (total $337,358) and approved allocations to city and county volunteer companies.

A proposed 3rd amendment to a lease involving Valicor (rail siding and industrial pretreatment facility) prompted questions about operational contingencies and reversion language; commissioners asked county staff and counsel to clarify whether the county retains sufficient operational protections if the pretreatment facility ceased operations. The board agreed to bring the item back for clarification at its Jan. 28 meeting.

The board also approved a standing agreement to engage a retired judge to chair police accountability trial boards on an as‑needed basis as a cost‑saving alternative to the Office of Administrative Hearings contract.

Finally, commissioners voted to enter a closed session to discuss acquisition of real property, confidential personnel matters and to consult with counsel for legal advice.