Responding to the public firestorm over legislation that gave them ultra-generous pension boosts, the Baltimore County Council tonight unanimously approved a bill to repeal it.

Councilmen Izzy Patoka, David Marks, Mike Ertel, Pat Young, Todd Crandell, Julian Jones and Wade Kach voted to undo the measure that almost all of them had previously approved. (Ertel had voted against it and Crandell was absent that session.)

In an election year, the body was clearly feeling the heat. Ahead of tonight’s vote, a bipartisan group of citizens (whose rally was canceled because of the weather forecast) instead released a statement denouncing the pension enhancement measure as “blatant self-dealing.”

The sponsor of Bill 19-26, Councilman Izzy Patoka (D, 2nd), spoke briefly, saying he hoped to counter “narratives floating around.”

He framed the repeal measure not as backtracking or damage control, but instead a response to “additional information.”

Patoka indicated that council members’ approval of the pension hike was influenced by factors like the voter-approved charter amendment to make their elected positions full-time and a salary hike recommended by the Personnel and Salary Advisory Board “that I believe . . . was high.”

“As we evolve in our thought, and as we gain more information, that’s part of that evolution,” said Patoka who, along with fellow councilmen Julian E. Jones and Pat Young, is running for county executive in the Democratic primary.

• Poised to undo their pension grab, but pretending that’s not what it was [OP-ED] (3/16/26)

Patoka’s measure repeals Bill 40-24, which changed county law to provide that the pensions of members who retire on or after January 1, 2025 will have their pensions based on the salaries of future active members of the council, rather than on their own final average earnings.

Leaving Bill 40-24 in place would have meant that retired members’ pensions would increase each time the salaries of active members increase.

The critics speaking out today, a bipartisan mix of community leaders and political candidates complained that the bill “would nearly double taxpayer-funded pensions for sitting council members.”

“The council members who voted to support this legislation voted to significantly enhance their own retirement benefits while neglecting the needs of thousands of other county employees,” their statement said.

Young’s Amendment

Before passing the repeal bill, the council also approved (5-2) an amendment offered by Councilman Young that would give the Personnel and Salary Advisory Board the authority to recommend pension, as well as salary, enhancements.

The separation of council pensions from other forms of compensation for county employees has long been considered an anomaly.

“This clarifies and makes sure that after this bill passes, a future council would not be able to come in and then potentially change the pension process or the pension benefit,” Young said, calling it “a good government amendment” and “a friendly amendment.”

But Patoka (who, along with Council Chair Ertel, voted against the amendment) didn’t see it that way.

“I believe that we need to repeal 40-24 without any conditions, without any additions,” Patoka asserted. “If this council, or a future council wants to do a study or do the necessary legwork to see how we move forward, you know, I think that may be appropriate in a separate action. But I think this action needs to be solely to repeal 40-24.”

Another pension related measure, Bill 26-26, is scheduled for a vote on April 6.

Sponsored by Councilman Julian Jones, it would place a proposed amendment to the county charter on the ballot for approval by the voters that, among other things, would remove language added to the charter by the voters in 2024 that said  “membership on the council shall be considered a full-time position for the purpose of determining compensation.”

The pension issue erupted last year when The Brew exposed the true impact of Bill 40-24, originally introduced by Councilman Wade Kach.

Kach’s own pension for 12 years of service, for example, was poised to jump 103% from $41,400 to $84,000. Other elected members, including Jones and Patoka, would have also gotten hefty pension jumps in the future.

To read complete Brew coverage and commentary on this issue:

• County Councilmen boost their pensions