By Adam Pagnucco.
County Executive Marc Elrich has always granted generous compensation packages to county employees and he has occasionally recommended tax hikes to fund them. In return, county government unions have supported his campaigns with one prominent union leader even taking the credit for his first executive race win. But now the county’s parks director says Elrich’s generosity apparently only applies to the executive branch because his recommendation for her department would not fund her employees’ compensation increase. And she is now asking the county council for help.
First, some background. The county’s Parks Department is part of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPCC), a bi-county state agency mostly funded by the governments of Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. The two county governments pick the commissioners who preside over the agencies but their operations are functionally separate from the executive branches. The Montgomery County side of M-NCPPC contains the Planning Department and the Parks Department. Of the two departments, Parks has more employees and a larger budget.
Every March 15, the county executive sends a recommended operating budget to the council with budgets for the county government and its associated agencies (most prominently MCPS, Montgomery College and M-NCPPC). Each of those agencies sends their requests to the executive prior to his recommendation and the county council gets final say subject to various requirements in state law. Sometimes the executive recommends less than their requests and the agencies approach the council for more money.
That’s going to happen this year.
In its FY26 proposed operating budget, the Parks Department requested $150.1 million, a $10 million (7.2%) increase. Of that increase, $5.6 million is due to compensation adjustments. The budget noted, “The Commission is about to enter into contract negotiations with the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and a wage reopener with the Municipal and County Government Employees Organization (MCGEO).” So most of that money is a marker to fund contract negotiations with the unions. Of the rest of the request, $3.2 million funds known operating commitments and $1.2 million funds program enhancements.
In his FY26 recommended operating budget, the executive recommended a budget of $144.4 million for the Parks Department, a $4.3 million (3.1%) increase. That percentage increase is less than half of the 7.4% increase the executive recommended for all county agencies. Additionally, the $4.3 million increase is below the $5.6 million that Parks requested for compensation. So if the council approves the executive’s recommendation, Parks employees will be getting less of an increase than the department intends and probably less than their peers in the rest of county government. The other impact is that if Parks uses its entire increase for compensation, it would have no money left over for any other increased costs of park maintenance.
That provoked Parks Director Miti Figueredo to write a strong letter to the county council, which is reprinted below. Here’s an excerpt.
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The County Executive’s budget has slashed the Montgomery Parks FY26 operating budget request, failing to fund essential services or cover the cost of paying Montgomery Parks’ approximately 870 career employees. This budget underfunds employee compensation and entirely fails to fund increases necessary to cover Major Known Commitments like maintenance for new parks, debt service, and inflationary increases. If it were approved as it is, Parks would be forced to implement a variety of cost-cutting measures that could include facility closures, staffing reductions, and cuts to fundamental parks services like athletic field lighting, irrigation, and maintenance, toilets in parks, grass cutting, and trash removal. The lapse of these basic services would harm communities that rely on parks for athletic competitions, recreation, socializing with friends, and appreciating nature.
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The money at hand is a pittance in a $7.7 billion operating budget. The county council won’t have to work too hard to make it up. The bigger question is how the unions will react. MCGEO, the largest union in the Parks Department, is also the largest union in the non-MCPS side of county government. It’s a major player in elections and has supported Elrich for decades. If I have learned anything about MCGEO in nearly 20 years of writing about them, it’s that they really hate anyone messing with what they get in collective bargaining. Could this be a problem for Elrich’s upcoming campaign for an at-large council seat?
Figueredo’s letter is reprinted in full below.
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March 21, 2025
The Honorable Kate Stewart
Montgomery County Council President
100 Maryland Avenue
Rockville, MD 20850
Dear Council President Stewart,
I am writing to express my deep concern regarding the County Executive’s recently recommended Fiscal Year 2026 operating budget for Montgomery Parks.
The County Executive’s budget has slashed the Montgomery Parks FY26 operating budget request, failing to fund essential services or cover the cost of paying Montgomery Parks’ approximately 870 career employees. This budget underfunds employee compensation and entirely fails to fund increases necessary to cover Major Known Commitments like maintenance for new parks, debt service, and inflationary increases. If it were approved as it is, Parks would be forced to implement a variety of cost-cutting measures that could include facility closures, staffing reductions, and cuts to fundamental parks services like athletic field lighting, irrigation, and maintenance, toilets in parks, grass cutting, and trash removal. The lapse of these basic services would harm communities that rely on parks for athletic competitions, recreation, socializing with friends, and appreciating nature.
The disparity between the Parks Department’s budget recommendation and those of other County departments is stark. The Parks Department’s proposed budget requested a modest 7.2% increase which was cut to 3.2% by the County Executive, compared to an average 6.7% increase for all other county departments.
The Parks Department’s budget is more than $1 million short of covering staff compensation and $3.1 million below what’s needed just to maintain the same level of services. While these seem like small amounts in an overall county budget of $7.7 billion, these funds are critical. The Parks Department consistently delivers high-quality programs and facilities and asks for only what is needed to maintain operations and provide some additional programs to serve the needs of a growing and diverse population.
Parks are, like schools and public safety, a core government service. Montgomery Parks are next door to 90+ schools with after-school programs, we maintain over 225 school athletic fields, and we partner with MCPS to provide educational programming. Kids, teenagers, and families rely on our recreational amenities and programs for their mental and physical health. Undercutting parks directly affects students, athletes, families, and communities.
Moreover, the public has definitively indicated that parks are a top priority. Parks received the highest quality rating across county services in the County’s own 2024 National Community Survey. In the recent PROS survey, Parks was rated as one of the most important factors affecting what makes Montgomery County a good place to live, along with public safety and schools. Cuts to parks will affect residents across the county but will hit vulnerable communities that Parks has been focused on serving the hardest.
In addition to the cuts to our operating budget, the County Executive has also proposed cutting our Capital Improvements Program, asking for a $2M reduction in Council- approved GO Bonds in our FY25- 30 CIP, including a $1.5M cut in FY26, which will affect implementation of the Wheaton Regional Park Master Plan.
I understand that the County Council is facing a very difficult challenge, and the Parks Department will, as always, do everything we can to find savings and help close the gap. However, as you begin deliberations, I ask that you address the disparity in this proposed budget and make every effort possible to treat parks equitably with other county departments.
As always, I thank you and your Council colleagues for your support.
Sincerely,
Miti Figueredo, Director
Montgomery Parks
