PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. — The Calvert Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) has opened the new ethics ordinance up for public comment for the next 30 days.
Gov. Wes Moore signed House Bill (HB) 834 into law on April 25, 2025, which requires Calvert County to include certain provisions in its ethics ordinance.
The law mandates the Calvert County Ethics Code to be updated to include a regulation that requires the Calvert County Ethics Commission (CCEC) to publicly disclose recommendations to expel a commissioner. The law also mandates that the county adopt a regulation authorizing the governing body to remove county elected officials for local and state conflict-of-interest violations based on the CCEC’s public recommendation.
Emily Shrieves, head of constituent services, explained that the ordinance specified that public disclosure of the recommendation to remove a commissioner would be based on already established rules in the ordinance — no additional grounds for removal were added to the ordinance.
The CCEC submitted the changes to the state and received its sign-off that the updates complied with HB 834. A CCEC attorney also explained that the additions used narrow language and would only apply to very specific circumstances with clearly outlined conflicts of interest. However, the procedure for removal would be much more detailed and more akin to a “mini trial.”
The BOCC will hold a public hearing on July 15, 2025, to adopt the ethics provisions.
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