Montgomery County — The Montgomery County Legislature convened its first 2026 meeting, administered oaths to incoming members and completed routine organizational business, including the election of a chair and deputy chair and a small amendment to the county operating budget.

Judge Lorraine Diamond administered the oath of office to newly elected members. "I, Maria Flynn Kowalczyk, swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States ... and that I will faithfully discharge the duties," Kowalczyk repeated during the swearing-in ceremony.

The body debated competing nominations for chair. After motions to nominate Brian Sweet and Michael J. Papp, members amended the resolution and ultimately installed Michael J. Papp as chair. The assembly administered the chair's oath: Papp agreed to "faithfully discharge the duties of the office of chair of the Montgomery County Legislature." The record shows a roll-call sequence and subsequent voice voting; the presiding officer announced the motion as carried.

Lawmakers next approved a resolution electing Chad Majewski deputy chair for 2026. The deputy chair nomination passed by voice vote and the oath language for the deputy chair was repeated during the meeting.

Members also appointed the clerk of the legislature, adopted rules and procedures for 2026, and designated an official newspaper to publish county matters for the year. A resolution delegating authority to the county auditor to approve erroneous assessment corrections in 2026 and a resolution designating depositories for county funds (and fixing maximum deposit amounts) were each approved without recorded discussion.

The legislature considered Resolution 8, an amendment to the 2026 operating budget related to an insurance line. Sponsors explained the change and referenced staff (Megan and Nicole) during a brief exchange about which budget line covered the expense. The transcript contains numerical phrases that appear garbled (for example, "$1.56 $1.30 was from your insurance line"), and the record does not provide a clear, precise dollar amount in standard notation; the amended budget resolution passed by voice vote.

With no further business, a motion to adjourn was made and seconded, and the meeting was adjourned at 06:15.

The meeting record shows routine organizational items and several voice votes; a contested nomination and amendment process accompanied the chair election. Where the transcript presents inconsistent name spellings or unclear numeric figures, the article notes the ambiguity rather than asserting specifics not clearly recorded in the meeting minutes.

Next steps: procedures, appointments and the amended budget will proceed under the new leadership for 2026; no additional hearings or follow-up dates were recorded in the provided transcript.