Engage Montgomery

Two new topics were posted this week on Montgomery County’s engageMontgomery website (http://engage.montgomerycountymd.gov), giving residents an opportunity to voice their opinions and share ideas about the carryout bag fee, and the practice of Montgomery County Public Schools to purchases school amenities using private funds.

The questions up for discussion are:

· If the carryout bag fee law is modified, what are your suggestions to change it, or should it be kept as it is now?

· Recently, public schools have purchased scoreboards and artificial turf using funds from booster clubs and private sources. Is this acceptable, and if so, what amenities should public schools be able to provide using private funds?

The two discussion topics will remain active on the engageMontgomery site for the next month, and residents are encouraged to visit and weigh in often with their opinions and ideas on these and other active topics. This social media platform is part of the new open government efforts that were launched in December to enhance government transparency and accessibility.

The engageMontgomery site serves as an informal online Town Hall Meeting. Users who sign up for an account are encouraged to express their own ideas on key issues, as well as support the ideas that they like best from others. This offers elected officials, department heads and program managers valuable feedback on issues that affect the community. Users gain points for signing up for an account, points for sharing ideas, and even more points when others support their ideas. Points can be “cashed in” for various prizes such as a free round of golf at a County golf course, a home security evaluation by a County police officer and a story time and tour for up to four children at a County library.

For access to additional information about the county’s open government efforts, go to the openMontgomery website at (http://montgomerycountymd.gov/open).

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