Prince George’s County Could Establish ‘Green’ Advisory Board

Prince George’s County could create a Green Business Advisory Board to help promote environmentally conscious commerce through tax credits if a plan introduced Tuesday is approved.

 The advisory board would be composed of appointees by the county council and county executive.  Its main purpose would be to provide advice regarding the implementation of the county’s tax credit program as it relates to green businesses.

 The proposal by council member Eric Olson (D-Dist. 2) outlined a possible Green Business Tax Program as a means to foster economic development.

 “The Prince George’s County Council is well aware of the demand and opportunity for a green economy in the county and the region and has undertaken several legislative initiatives to support efforts and to encourage our citizens to become environmentally efficient through the fiscal cost associated with establishment of additional tax credits,” Olson’s resolution read.

 The council will vote on the resolution at a later date.

 The council also took up other resolutions, including:

 --A proposal by Council Chairwoman Ingrid Turner to create a task force to identify services that overlap between the Board of Education and the Prince George’s County government. The task force would be composed of appointees from the county and state and would be in response to a 7,032-student decline in student enrollment over the past five years in Prince George’s County Schools. Gov. Martin O’Malley has proposed 2 percent decline in education spending in Prince George’s County as a result.

 --A motion by Turner, at the request of the Prince George’s County Planning Board, to extend validity for the application process for property developments in the county due to the economic downturn.  The Planning Board contends that the recession slowed down proposed development so much that applicants may have to start from the beginning in the application process due to expired permits.