About the Board
Mission and Purpose:
The Board of Estimates formulates and executes the fiscal policy of Baltimore City. The Board may promulgate rules and regulations and summon before it the heads of departments, bureaus or divisions, municipal officers, and members of commissions and boards to exercise its powers and perform its duties, which are laid out in the Article VI of the City Charter.
The Board of Estimates conducts formal hearings in regard to operating and capital budget requests by City agencies; prepares a proposed Ordinance of Estimates to be submitted to the City Council and is the entity responsible for awarding contracts and supervising all purchasing by the City.
Role of the City Council President:
The President of the City Council is also the chair of the Board of Estimates. The City Council President presides over the weekly Board of Estimates meetings and prepares the President's Memo which lists the agenda items to be considered on the Routine Agenda (items voted upon in aggregate) and the Non-Routine Agenda (items voted upon individually).
Members of the Board of Estimates:
The Board of Estimates is composed of the Mayor, President of the City Council, Comptroller, City Solicitor, and Director of Public Works. The President of the City Council is the President of the Board, and one of the members serves as Secretary. The Mayor appoints the non-elected officials of the Board and which member shall be the Secretary. Below are the current members of the Board of Estimates:
- Nick J. Mosby, City Council President and Chair of the Board of Estimates
- Brandon M. Scott, Mayor
- Bill Henry, Comptroller and Secretary to the Board of Estimates
- James Shea, City Solicitor
- Jason W. Mitchell, Director of Public Works
Meeting Times and Dates:
Beginning in 2022, the Board of Estimates meets on alternating Wednesdays, unless otherwise notified, at 9:00 a.m. on the second floor of City Hall, room 215. Full meeting schedule and submission deadlines can be found here.
* COVID-19 UPDATE *
Effective April 6, 2022 the Board of Estimates will meet in person in the Hyman Pressman Board Room with participants having the option to join virtually via WebEx. Please consult the published meeting agenda or contact Matt Stegman (matthew.stegman@baltimorecity.gov) for virtual access information. Meetings will also be broadcast live on CharmTV (Channel 25) as normal.
2024 Board of Estimates Meeting Dates:
Please click here to download the 2024 meeting schedule.
Board Agenda and Minutes:
The administrative staff of the Board of Estimates prepares the Agenda for Board of Estimates meetings based on submissions from City Agencies. The agenda submission deadline is 11:00 a.m. on the Tuesday preceding the Wednesday meeting unless otherwise notified.
Copies of the Board of Estimates Agenda are made available in limited quantities on the day of the meeting in Room 215. The agenda and President’s Memorandum outlining Routine and Non-Routine agenda items are posted here no later than close of business on the Monday preceding a Board meeting.
Protests:
On March 20, 2019, the Board of Estimates adopted the Regulations on Procurement, Protests, Minority, and Women-owned Business Enterprise and Debarment/Suspension (Regulations) effective July 01, 2019. Pursuant to Section II. Protest Regulations, the Resolution on the Regulations of Board Meetings and Protests adopted by the Board on January 22, 2014, was repealed effective July 1, 2019.
Please submit all protests to James.Knighton@BaltimoreCity.gov or:
Board of Estimates
204 City Hall
100 N. Holliday Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21202
Guidelines for Testimony:
Persons wishing to offer oral testimony must sign-in and state their name, the community in which they reside and whether they are testifying on behalf of themselves or an organization for the record.
Written testimony may be given to designated staff at the hearing.
Representing Yourself - Residents who want to testify on behalf of themselves will be limited to a single 2 minute presentation.
Representing an Organization - If multiple people from an organization or affiliated group are present, one representative must be designated to speak on behalf of that organization or group. The representative will be limited to a single 2 minute presentation.
* Individuals may not sign-in to testify and then yield their time to another presenter. *
All individuals and organization representatives will be permitted to testify only once. If the individual or organization representative has points they wish to raise that cannot be addressed in the allotted 2 minute time period, they may submit written testimony to the staff at the hearing.
Anyone failing to comply with any of these guidelines may be considered disruptive and asked to leave the hearing room.
