Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) is threatening a veto if the County Council rejects his request to privatize storm water management in Maryland’s most populous jurisdiction.
A line-item budget veto rare seen in Montgomery County, and Leggett’s promised veto of the roughly $48 million allocated to storm water management in the proposed capital improvement program budget would be the first time he will have wielded that part of his executive power.
The all-Democratic council must decide whether to go ahead with its original plan to keep storm water management mostly in-house, which it endorsed 5 to 4 in a straw vote Monday. The council could also amend its decision on the storm water management budget before a final vote on the capital budget May 2
The veto threat had staffers dusting off their copies of the county charter for guidance Thursday. Senior legislative attorney Bob Drummer said a line-item veto could be overruled only by a supermajority — six votes on the nine-member council.
If the council doesn’t override the veto, the item disappears from the budget.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Jennifer Barrios over at the Washington Post