Sheriff Sean Kilkane told Montgomery County commissioners at a Dec. 4 public hearing that the Sheriff’s Office welcomes the proposed 2026 budget increases that add two corporal positions, replace aging patrol vehicles and supply reinforced body armor and threat plates for the warrants division.

"The addition of 2 new corporal positions will greatly enhance our flexibility and leadership capacity," Kilkane said, and he added that expanding body-worn cameras and other investments "contributes directly to our core mission to deliver the highest standards of service to Montgomery County." He also said footage from body-worn cameras has "95% of the time" vindicated deputies when complaints have arisen.

Karen D'Angelo, who identified herself as the executive director leading the county’s district library center in Norristown, thanked the commissioners for support that the library system uses to run 34 locations, multiple bookmobiles and extensive outreach. She told the board the system coordinates services for roughly 865,000 residents, runs programs that drew more than 37,000 people last year, and checked out "almost 1 million items, both physical and online." She invited residents to visit the temporary library location at 1700 Markley Street while renovations proceed.

Brian Matthew Rhodes, chief executive of Resources for Human Development (RHD), thanked the county for its partnership on homelessness services and described two recent short-term supportive housing projects in Lansdale and Norristown that will add 70 beds. "The county has invested roughly $3,000,000 annually in the operations of these sites in addition to the substantial capital commitment to develop both locations," Rhodes said, and he praised the county’s role in expanding services for people with intellectual disabilities, substance use and mental-health needs.

Why this matters: The comments show local public-safety and service providers framing the proposed budget as sustaining operations and enabling planned projects — including personnel and equipment for law enforcement, expanded library access, and additional short-term homelessness supports. Those investments intersect with ongoing policy and funding questions raised elsewhere in the hearing and by residents.

The hearing concluded after brief commissioner remarks and a motion to adjourn; the transcript records the motion and a second but does not record the final voice vote tally or other formal actions on the budget itself.