Howard County Council adopts FY2026 budget after extended debate over school funding and one-time cuts

The Howard County Council on Tuesday approved the county's fiscal year 2026 operating and capital budget after several hours of amendments and debate, voting unanimously to pass the budget ordinance (CB 36-2025) and a separate emergency measure that directs $14.5 million in excess surplus to the Howard County Public School System (CB 45-2025).

The adoption came after multiple amendment votes and sustained discussion over whether to tap one-time reserves, fleet and PAYGO funds, or school health and fund-balance accounts to close the school system's budget gap. Chair Walsh moved the final budget ordinance and called the roll; the final vote on CB 36-2025 as amended was recorded as unanimous (Chair Walsh: yes; Dr. Jones: yes; Ms. Young: yes; Ms. Rigby: yes; Mr. Youngman: yes).

Why it matters: The votes resolve the county's spending plans for FY2026, including operating allocations for public safety, libraries and higher education, and a high-stakes debate over school funding that centered on whether to use recurring versus one-time dollars and which internal accounts the school system should be asked to access.

Council action and the school debate

Council members approved CB 36-2025 — the budget and appropriation ordinance for FY2026 — after a sequence of amendments addressing technical corrections, capital funding swaps, program-specific changes and targeted operating adjustments. Earlier in the session the council approved CB 45-2025, the emergency measure authorizing use of excess surplus revenue “up to $14,500,000” for the Board of Education; that bill also passed on a unanimous vote.

Several amendments that would have moved additional one-time funds to the school system failed. Council member Walsh — who sponsored a floor amendment that sought roughly $8,000,000 in additional support by restoring PAYGO and reducing certain fleet and other internally charged items — framed the proposal as an attempt to avoid drawing on the school system's health fund. Walsh said the amendment aimed to “find the $8,000,000 that's needed to plug that specific hole proposed by the executive in…