By: Adam Reuter
Happy New Year, Baltimore County. I hope you enjoyed your holidays, because while you were recovering from your New Year’s hangover, your County Council was back at work on January 5th doing what they do best: spending your money with a smile and a shrug.
I sat through the first legislative session of 2026 so you didn’t have to, and let me tell you, the “New Year, New Me” resolution didn’t make it to the Council chambers. It’s the same old game, just with a new Chairman.
The “Competitive” Bid That Wasn’t
The highlight of the night was a sports clinic in how to waste tax dollars without breaking a sweat. The Council approved three “on-call” engineering contracts for the Bureau of Solid Waste. The price tag? Up to $9 million combined.
Now, usually, when you hand out that kind of cash, you want a real competition. You want companies fighting to give the taxpayers the best deal. But according to the county’s own notes, how many companies applied for these three massive contracts?
Three.
That’s right. Three contracts available, three applicants, three winners. Everyone gets a trophy, and you get the bill. It’s statistically impossible to have a fair bid where every single applicant wins, unless the game is rigged before the starting gun goes off.
The Fake Watchdog Act
It gets worse. These contracts are for five years, renewable up to nine. But the fine print says they stay in effect indefinitely until the county decides the work is “complete”. It’s a zombie contract—it can’t die.
Councilman David Marks put on a nice little show for the cameras, asking why the term was so long. The Bureau Chief gave a non-answer about it being “standard,” and Marks just said, “Okay,” and folded.
That’s the theater, folks. Ask the question to look tough, then sign the check anyway.
The Data Center Shakedown
Then we have Bill 3-26. Councilman Pat Young wants to “study” data centers. Sounds responsible, right? Wrong. The bill actually puts a moratorium on permitting them.
When the government pauses an entire industry, it’s usually for one of two reasons: either they genuinely care about the power grid (unlikely), or they want to force developers to come to the table—and the fundraiser—to get the pause lifted. During the meeting, Councilman Patoka was grilling a witness, fishing to see if there were any “active proposals” the public knew about. He seemed relieved when the answer was no. They’re clearing the board so they can pick the winners later.
The Quiet Land Grab
Finally, keep your eyes on Middle River. Buried at the end of the agenda, Marks introduced a resolution for a “Middle River Logistics Park” and another to remove a parcel of land from the “surplus” list.
“Logistics Park” is polite speak for “more warehouses and trucks.” He’s setting up a special committee to “investigate” it, which is politician code for “controlling the narrative while we cut the deal”.
The Bottom Line
They think we aren’t watching. They think because they bury these details in “Notes Packages” and boring PDFs that we won’t connect the dots. But we see it.
We see the $9 million handouts. We see the lack of competition. We see the indefinite contracts. Yours truly, The Outspector General, will continue to pass on this vital information to my fellow neighbors.
Welcome to 2026, neighbors. Hold onto your wallets!
