School Overcrowding Bill Passes, Baltimore County Could Limit New Construction

BALTIMORE COUNTY, MD — Building new housing developments near overcrowded schools could be harder thanks to a bill passed Monday by the Baltimore County Council.

Supporters say the legislation would disincentivize developers from building large neighborhoods in already-strained school districts. Opponents argue that it wouldn't fix overcrowding and will instead slow affordable housing construction required by the federal government.

The bill now heads to County Executive Johnny Olszewski (D), who can sign or veto the legislation.

In this statement obtained by FOX 45, Olszewski said he's still deciding how he'll address the bill:

"We share concerns regarding school overcrowding — and support efforts to responsibly address it — but our administration has also expressed valid challenges with this complex bill, including its detrimental impacts on Baltimore County's moral and legal obligations to address attainable housing. In light of those concerns and flurry of amendment activity, we will carefully review the final version of this legislation in the coming days to determine the appropriate next step."

The legislation would require proposed developments to get a school capacity approval certificate from a new committee before construction, WYPR reported. The original bill would've let developers proceed without the certificate after five years because schools would've had time to prepare for the influx, but a Monday amendment trimmed that waiting period to four years. WYPR said the legislation would also close the adjacency loophole, which has let developers build in overcrowded school districts if a nearby school was under capacity.

Schools were previously considered overcrowded when they reached 115 percent capacity, but WYPR said the original bill would've dropped that overcrowded threshold to 100 percent capacity. WYPR reported that another Monday amendment shifted the overcrowded definition to schools at 105 percent capacity.

"This gives a little bit more flexibility," Council Member Mike Ertel (D-Towson) said, according to WYPR. "At 105 (percent) the schools are still manageable. There are a lot of things that can be done to help mitigate that."

Baltimore County Public Schools has changed its school boundaries five times in the last two years, The Baltimore Banner reported.

FOX 45 said 50 out of BCPS's 164 schools exceed 100 percent capacity.

Reducing school overcrowding is even harder because Baltimore County is legally required to add 1,000 affordable housing units by 2027, The Banner said.

"It seemed like the only thing we're focused on is shutting down development, even though it can cause serious harm to our economy," Council Member Julian Jones (D-Woodstock) said, according to The Baltimore Sun.

The Banner said Jones and Pat Young (D-Catonsville) were the only council members who voted against the bill, which passed 4 to 2. Ertel, Council Chair Izzy Patoka (D- Pikesville), David Marks (R-Upper Falls) and Wade Kach (R-Timonium) sponsored the bill and voted for it. Todd Crandell (R-Dundalk) wasn't present at the meeting and didn't vote, The Banner reported.

The Sun said Young was frustrated that the committee approving development certificates would be a politically appointed body, not the county-trained permitting staff.

"We are ceding control to a politically appointed body and I can't get behind that," Young said, according to The Sun.