NEWS YOU CAN USE

February 10, 2008

The Maryland Mayors Association Fall Conference concluded on Friday after the Leader-to-Leader Forum. A lot of business was conducted during the two-day conference and our State legislators made themselves available to us. One of the highlights of the Conference was the swearing in of Senator David Harrington. The Senate Chamber was packed. Senator Harrington was accompanied by his wife and son, and the Governor and Lt. Governor were in attendance. The Conference was attended by mayors from all over the State of Maryland. In total, more than 75 mayors were in attendance with 15 of them from Prince George’s County. Prince George’s County has 27 municipalities.

The following is some information that you can use and share with your constituents.

A Closed Primary Election for Prince George's County Voters

UPPER MARLBORO, MD - Prince George's County residents who wish to vote in the February 12, 2008 Presidential Primary Election are reminded that Maryland is a closed primary state, which means that voters registered as Democrats may vote only for Democratic candidates, and voters registered as Republicans may vote only for Republican candidates.

The two other recognized political parties in Maryland (Libertarians and Greens) choose their candidates by other methods so they do not appear on the primary ballots. In Prince George's County, MD there are no non-partisan races. Therefore, third party and unaffiliated registrants ARE NOT eligible to vote in the 2008 Presidential Primary Election.

OBTAINING ELECTION RESULTS FOR THE FEBRUARY 12, 2008 PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY ELECTION
UPPER MARLBORO, MD - The unofficial results of the Tuesday, February 12, 2008 Presidential Primary Election will be posted on the Prince George's County Government's home page at www.co.pg.md.us . The Prince George's County Board of Elections estimates that the unofficial election results will be posted at approximately 8:30 p.m. and will be updated every half hour thereafter. Also, the public and the media can view results at the Prince George's County Board of Elections located at 16201 Trade Zone Avenue, Upper Marlboro, MD.

Meeting Notice

Prince George's Chamber of Commerce
Small & Minority Business Committee

Special Guest, Mike Turner, SLMBE Outreach Coordinator, WSSC, Will discuss:

Doing Business with WSSC

Thursday, February 14, 2008, 8:30 a.m.,
Prince George's Sports & Learning Complex
Town Hall Room
8001 Sheriff Road
Landover, MD 20785

Please RSVP by February 11, 2008

Mount Rainier City government offices will be closed in observance of Presidents' Day. As always, our public safety services will be operational. HAPPY Presidents' Day!

Prince George's County Government Holiday Schedule for Presidents' Day
LARGO, MD - Prince George's County government offices, with the exception of public safety agencies or emergency situations requiring immediate attention, will be closed on Monday, February 18, 2008, in observance of Presidents' Day.

The Department of Environmental Resources (DER) announces that the Brown Station Road Sanitary Landfill and all waste management services and facilities, including recycling and trash collection, will operate on a regular schedule on Monday, February 18, 2008. For more information, please call DER's Waste Management Division at (301) 952-7630.

The Bus, a public transit service operated by the Prince George's County Department of Public Works and Transportation, will run all routes on a normal schedule, except Routes 51 and 51 Extended on Monday, February 18, 2008. These routes provide service to county government offices including the Equestrian Center, Upper Marlboro Courthouse, County Administration Building and the Chrysler Building. In addition, the county's Para-transit services program, Call-A-Bus, will not run on February 18. Normal operations of TheBus and Para-transit services will resume on Tuesday, February 19, 2008.

AMENDED TOW LEGISLATION HELPS CITIZENS, RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES IN PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY

UPPER MARLBORO, MD - Prince George's County Public Safety Director Vernon Herron announced today that the Office of Homeland Security Public Safety Communications and the Prince George's County Police Department hosted a special work session to introduce amended towing and impound legislation regulations under CB-35-2007. This legislation amended previous towing regulations to reduce the time a tow company has to provide notice of a vehicle tow from private property.

"With this legislation, 9-1-1 personnel will know immediately whether callers are victims of a crime or if their vehicles were subject to impound and towed," Herron said. "We worked very hard with County Council members and with the towing industry to make sure this is an effective and enforceable law that will ensure the safety of the citizens, residents and towing professionals."

The work session advised the Association of Towing & Recovery Professionals of Maryland and representatives from three local towing companies of new procedures on how tow companies must first contact the Police Department prior to the attachment and tow of any vehicle. This notification must be made to the Police Department's Teletype Section by phone or via computer.

Staff experts from the county's Office of Information Technology and Communications (OITC) provided an on-site demonstration of a new web-based software application that will help tow-professionals capture and forward specific information required by the legislation and other information as determined by the Chief of Police. Representatives from the tow companies received instruction on the use of the program and were able to submit their access registration information during the meeting.

County experts from the Police Department, OITC and Public Safety Communications were available to answer process and procedure questions. Feedback from the towing industry representatives was positive.

"We feel this software is a step in the right direction for the citizens and motoring public in Prince George's County. The towing industry is excited to work with the county and this should help lead to a more professional response by the towing industry."

For more information on the legislation and its implementation, contact the Police Department's Technical Services Division at (301) 985-3617 or via email at IVTS@CO.PG.MD.US.