Baltimore County Councilman David Marks plans to introduce a resolution next week asking state legislators to expand the county inspector general’s oversight to Baltimore County Public Schools.
Marks, a Republican from Upper Falls, said he will bring up the resolution at the council’s Aug. 4 meeting. The measure would also call for additional staffing to ensure adequate oversight.
Under current county laws, the inspector general lacks the authority to investigate complaints about the school system, which typically receives about half of the county’s overall budget.
However, the Maryland Office of the Inspector General for Education, a statewide watchdog agency, conducts audits and investigations of all local school boards, public schools, the state education department and other agencies. The state office and the Baltimore County office have a memorandum of understanding to share resources and collaborate on certain cases.
Montgomery County’s inspector general, for instance, is already responsible for oversight of the school system, but they have an agreement to let the state office “step in” when it comes to state funding, said Richard Henry, the state inspector general for education.
If the inspector general were able to uncover waste totaling millions of dollars, Marks said Thursday, he believes it would be a “good return on investment.”
Marks told The Baltimore Sun that he had thought about expanding the inspector general’s oversight for several years following a ransomware attack that shut down the school system, ongoing questions about the residency of some students who attend county schools and high costs to construct new school buildings.
Kelly Madigan, Baltimore County’s current inspector general, voiced tentative support for the measure.
“I am happy to do anything that is required under the law, and if the legislature passes this, I would support it,” she said Thursday. “However, I will need additional staff to tackle these additional duties and responsibilities.”
Madigan’s office currently has a staff of six: herself, a deputy inspector general and four investigators, to investigate complaints of waste, fraud or abuse in a county with more than 850,000 residents.
Meanwhile, the inspector general’s office in Baltimore has a staff of 15 for a population of roughly 568,000 people.
Khadija Walker has been nominated to succeed Madigan and become the county’s next inspector general.
This wouldn’t be the first attempt to increase the inspector general’s oversight of Baltimore County’s public schools. In 2021, Democratic state Del. Eric Ebersole and then-Sen. Kathy Klausmeier sponsored a measure to do just that. While then-Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski also supported the additional duties, the bill was ultimately withdrawn.
Though he’s now in Congress, a spokesperson for Olszewski said he is supportive of the effort to increase oversight.
Racquel Bazos contributed to this article. Have a news tip? Contact Natalie Jones at najones@baltsun.com.
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