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Public commenters at Calvert County FY26 hearing urge restored parks funding, warn that EMS staffing plan could hurt volunteers and seek pay increases
Summary
Speakers at the May 6 hearing urged restoration of parks operational funding and CIP projects, warned that adding four EMS supervisors could reduce volunteer paramedics, and asked the county to include step increases and a cost-of-living adjustment for employees.
Speakers at the Calvert County Board of County Commissioners’ May 6 FY26 budget public hearing urged the board to preserve and restore funding for parks and recreation, cautioned against a proposed expansion of career EMS supervisors that they said could undermine volunteer emergency medical services, and asked the board to adopt step increases and a cost-of-living adjustment for county employees.
Judy Peterson, chairman of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, thanked commissioners for past support and asked for restoration of operational funding and attention to delayed capital improvement projects. “Fields still need to be mowed, bathrooms need to be cleaned, and trash cans emptied,” Peterson said, urging continued county support for day-to-day park operations as well as long-term investments and volunteer expansion.
Marcus Shields, speaking as a Prince Frederick resident, said parks and recreation are central to preserving the county’s environment and rural character and described planned projects such as Cove Point Park improvements and Breezy Point Beach upgrades as essential investments.
On public safety staffing, Jerry Mumper, speaking on behalf of Calvert Advanced Life Support, warned that the career EMS FY26 request for four additional EMS supervisors could harm volunteer paramedic capacity. Mumper said Calvert currently has an “incredible force of 37 volunteer paramedics” and argued that adding supervisors and expanding career positions without exploring alternatives risks accelerating a decline in volunteers. He said the current FY24 supervisor salary costs were “over . . . 530,000” and that adding positions would push that total to “over a million dollars,” as stated in his remarks.
Barbara Warner, chair of the County Employees Representative Committee (CERC), said county employees appreciate the board’s work during a difficult budget cycle and asked that the FY26 budget include both step increases and a cost-of-living adjustment. “Employees are requesting both step increases and cost of living adjustment to be included in the budget,” Warner told the board.
Criticism of budget documents and process Don Lavelle, a resident, criticized the transparency and accuracy of the budget documents and presentation, saying the county’s materials contained “numerous inaccuracies, misinformation, lack of information, and misleading statements” and challenging specific language in the commissioners’ transmittal letter about fund balance and transfers.
Process notes The board read rules for public comment: individuals were allocated two minutes and representatives of groups five minutes; Resolution 6-89 was cited as governing order and decorum for the hearing. The BOCC kept the public comment record open through the close of business on June 9, 2025.
Ending Speakers represented parks volunteers and advisory members, volunteer EMS advocates, county employees and critical residents. The board encouraged continued written feedback before the June meeting and will consider the budget for adoption after the comment period closes.
