Sec. 33-5. Statement of legislative intent; merit system principles; statement of purpose; merit system review commission; applicability of article.
Montgomery County, Md., Code § 33-5 (2026)
Sec. 33-5. Statement of legislative intent; merit system principles; statement of purpose; merit system review commission; applicability of article.LinkCopy Citation
(a)
Statement of legislative intent. It is the legislative intent of the county council that this article foster excellence in the public service; high individual competence among employees; recognition that respect for the employee as an individual is first required for achieving such excellence and competence; and harmonious and efficient operation within the various components of county government.
(b)
Merit system principles. The merit system established by this chapter encompasses the following principles:
(1)
All county government authority, including internal supervisory authority, is for service to the people, is derived from law and the people and must not be abused;
(2)
The recruitment, selection and advancement of merit system employees shall be on the basis of their relative abilities, knowledge and skills, including the full and open consideration of qualified applicants for initial appointment;
(3)
Merit system employees shall be provided compensation consistent with standard of comparability with other public agencies and the private sector;
(4)
Merit system employees shall be provided training as needed to assure high quality performance and such training where possible should also provide increased opportunity to facilitate their career advancement;
(5)
Merit system employees are encouraged to excel in their work performance; they shall be retained if they meet standards of satisfactory overall performance and shall be separated from merit system service if they do not; both supervisors and subordinates have an equal responsibility to facilitate work performance correction and improvement;
(6)
All applicants to and employees of the county merit system shall be assured fair treatment without regard to political affiliation or other nonmerit factors in all aspects of personnel administration.
(7)
Merit system employees shall be protected against any coercion to engage in illegal or improper actions or partisan political activities and shall be prohibited from using their official authority for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election or nomination for office;
(8)
The merit system established under this chapter shall be interpreted in accordance with these principles.
(c)
Statement of purpose. The basic purpose of this article is to delineate the respective responsibilities of the county executive, the chief administrative officer and the merit system protection board for personnel management in county government. It is the further purpose of this article to implement by law the county charter responsibilities of the county council with respect to a merit system generally, including provisions for salaries and wages of all classified employees of the merit system under a uniform salary plan, the merit system protection board's authority to exercise its appellate functions, and promotion of the overall objective that the integrity of the county merit system be preserved and that it be administered fairly and efficiently in the best interests of the county and its employees.
(d)
Merit system review commission.
(i)
In addition to the County Council's legislative responsibilities under Sections 101 and 401 of the County Charter, the Council, as necessary, may appoint a Merit System Review Commission by resolution.
(ii)
The Commission’s duties are to:
(A)
strengthen the system of checks and balances among those officials and agencies of county government having merit system responsibilities; and
(B)
examine and recommend legislative or administrative revision to the merit system in keeping with the intent of the Charter and this Article and with new developments in the field of public administration and personnel management.
(iii)
The Commission has 11 members who are appropriately qualified County residents. The Executive must appoint 5 members and the Council must appoint the remaining members.
(iv)
Each Commission terminates after it submits its final report to the Council.
(e)
Applicability of article. This article shall apply to all merit system employees defined herein. Not included under this article unless specifically stated to the contrary are those positions excluded by section 401 of the county charter as amended and any other positions so excluded from the merit system under other provisions of county law.