Howard County Council requires public posting of periodic reports to council website

The Howard County Council approved amendments to Council Bill 16-20-25 requiring that certain reports due to the council be published on the County Council website and retained there for at least five years.

Sponsor Chair Liz Walsh framed the bill as a transparency and accountability measure: staff created a public-facing library listing required reports, the responsible offices, code citations and whether the council has received the report. Walsh said work began with staff cataloging overdue reports and that putting them online makes it easier for both the council and constituents to see which reports are outstanding.

Several councilmembers expressed concern about whether a bill was necessary to require posting on the councils own website, because the Howard County Charter requires physical posting on lobby bulletin boards but does not prescribe a web posting requirement. Councilmember Deb Young asked why the council needed legislation rather than a policy decision. Walsh and staff replied that the legislative route creates enforceable transparency and incentives for timely submission by responsible agencies.

Amendment 1 clarified that records covered by the bill will be published for at least five years; the amendment passed, and the bill as amended passed by unanimous vote. Staff said a public-facing web page has already been created and staff will populate it going backward from 2025 to earlier years as reports become available.

Councilmembers asked staff to review the list of 80 or so reports, consider removing obsolete items, and to continue following up with administration departments that have not submitted required reports.