Baltimore County Councilman David Marks wants to expand the inspector general’s reach to include finding waste, fraud and abuse in the county schools.
To do it Marks, a Republican, will need Democratic support in the state legislature.
The General Assembly has to sign off because local school systems are state agencies. A similar proposal died in a state house committee in 2021. Opponents said it would have been overkill because safeguards are already in place.
But Marks said having the IG looking for waste, fraud and abuse in the school system is needed because it accounts for half of the county’s budget.
“We’re years after the ransomware attack and there’s still some questions about what happened there,” Marks said on WYPR’s Midday. "They have an enormous budget. Our teachers were not able to get the raises that they wanted. And a lot of them feel that there is some savings that can be found in the budget.”
BCPS spokeswoman Gboyinde Onijala did not return a request for comment.
At a recent council meeting, Marks took aim at two Democratic state legislators who were there to speak on another issue.
“The state legislature could help us by passing a measure like that,” Marks told Del. Scott Phillips who responded, “Councilman, I don’t disagree.”
Phillips said he will review the legislation and consider it.
Marks also asked Sen. Benjamin Brooks where he stood on expanding the inspector general’s authority to include the school system.
Brooks said, “I have to go back and look at the (2021) bill and see why it failed.”
Marks does have the support of Democratic Sen. Carl Jackson. He plans to introduce the legislation in the Senate.
“We’re in a time where the economy is tough,” Jackson said. “I just think we have to be good stewards of the taxpayer dollars and how we’re spending it.”
Del. Ryan Narwocki, a Republican, plans to introduce the legislation in the House.
In 2021 Sen. Charles Sydnor, a Democrat, raised concerns about the inspector general having authority over the school system. Sydnor questioned whether it would be a duplicating effort because safeguards are already in place.
“There’s a financial audit, a financial statement audit, a legislative audit, an IRS benefits audit, procurement audit, MSDE capital project audit,” Sydnor said at the time.
When contacted about the current proposal, Sydnor said he would look at the legislation but "if it's duplicative, my position is likely to be unchanged."
Expanding the inspector general’s turf would likely mean the county would need to fund more positions for the office, which currently has six employees.
The state already has a state inspector general for education, Richard Henry, who oversees Maryland’s 24 school jurisdictions with a staff of 15.
Henry said he has an agreement with Baltimore County Inspector General Kelly Madigan to work together if she gets a case with ties to the school system.
Councilman Marks is asking his colleagues on the County Council to support his push for the state legislation to give the county IG school system oversight.
“We did not have that before,” Marks said.
There will be a public hearing on the resolution at the council’s August 26 meeting with a vote scheduled September 2.
