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Montgomery County committee advances amendments to public campaign finance law after OLO review
Summary
The Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee reviewed an Office of Legislative Oversight report and voted to advance Bill 2024 with amendments that raise the individual donor cap and increase small-donor matching ratios; the committee also endorsed eliminating the PEF advisory committee and asked staff to fix CPI timing language before full council.
The Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee on Tuesday reviewed an Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) report on Montgomery Countys public campaign finance program and advanced Bill 2024 with several amendments intended to narrow a fundraising gap between publicly financed and traditionally financed candidates.
Blaise DeFazio, with the Office of Legislative Oversight, told the committee that Montgomery Countys public election fund is a small-donor matching program and highlighted a striking disparity in fundraising: "In Montgomery County, traditionally funded candidates can raise $24 for every $1 raised by a publicly funded candidate," he said, citing OLOs analysis of recent election cycles.
The committee accepted a set of amendments offered after the presentation. Chair (name not provided in the record) said the committee would increase the maximum individual eligible contribution to publicly financed candidates from $250 to $500 while keeping the $150 matched cap and the programs overall maximums unchanged. "This amendment is accepted," the chair said during the meeting record.
Staff and OLO also proposed and the committee approved raising the first-tier matching ratio for county executive contributions (moving the first-tier multiplier to better align with neighboring jurisdictions) and increasing council-level ratios to emphasize small-dollar donors. OLOs modeling showed the changes would bring Montgomery County closer to the matching levels used in Howard, Prince Georges and Baltimore County.
Committee members also signaled support for the OLO recommendation to eliminate the PEF advisory committee, citing low resident interest and the countys existing institutional oversight. Several members said the committee had served its purpose during program startup but that continued participation by elected officials and county staff reduced the need for a standing advisory committee.
Members raised a technical implementation issue about the laws automatic consumer price index (CPI) adjustments. Finance representatives warned the current draft language could double-count years when applying a catch-up CPI change and recommended clarifying the calculation and the reference period. The committee agreed to reset the statutory numbers now as part of Bill 2024 and asked staff to refine the CPI-timing language before the measure reaches the full council.
The OLO report and staff materials also included program details and historic distributions: OLO reported that the PEF distributed approximately $5.3 million to 23 candidates in 2018 and $3.7 million to 20 candidates in 2022, and that the most recent appropriation left roughly $4.6 million for the 2026 cycle. The report described Montgomery Countys progressive matching formula (matching only the first $150 of a contribution with higher multipliers on the earliest $50 increments) and certification thresholds candidates must meet to receive funds.
The committees recommendation to the full council was favorable with the accepted amendments and one outstanding item: staff will present clarified CPI adjustment language before full council consideration. The committee adjourned its morning session without a final council vote on the bill.
The bill now moves to the full council with committee support and a staff task to refine the CPI formula and confirm cross-references in the code where the $250 figure appears.
