A measure granting partial voting rights to a Howard County School Board student member will move to the General Assembly after being approved by the Howard delegation.
“It brings us in line with counties around us [and] gives a good message to students,” said Del. Elizabeth Bobo, D-District 12B.
The measure was the only bill the delegation approved of the five considered this week. Three bills were held; one was subsequently withdrawn.
Of the 11-member delegation, state Sen. Allan Kittleman, R-District 9, and Del. Warren Miller, R-District 9A, voted against the partial voting bill. Miller did not give a reason for his vote during the meeting.
“I certainly have no problem with students participating,” Kittleman said.
But a School Board measure “would fail because of a fourth vote of a student member. I have a problem with that,” he said.
The delegation agreed to hold for a second week the bill granting workers? compensation for auxiliary policeofficers.
Del. James Malone, D-District 12A, said he wanted to look into Baltimore County?s program, which allows the volunteers to receive partial wages from their paying job, to determine if it is appropriate for Howard.
After debating the merits of a proposal that would ban wielding a machete, the bill was withdrawn at the request of Council Member Calvin Ball, D-District 2, who proposed it.
Given some questions and concerns about the bill, Ball said he wanted to work through it with the possibility of revisiting the issue in the future.
Delegation members had questioned whether the measure suggested machetes were allowed in other counties or whether a separate category for machetes was needed, rather than include them in the list of knives in the law.
The delegation also again postponed a decision on a measure giving county officials the right to impose fines for zoning violations.
Del. Gail Bates, R-District 9A, had raised concerns the government would be perceived as “heavy handed [and] overly aggressive.”
A measure authorizing the county teacher?s union to charge nonmembers bound by union contract negotiations a fee for services also was held until next week for further review.
Bobo said she and Bates were crafting amendments to the measure.
The delegation is expected to meet next week to discuss the three remaining proposals.
