A judge’s ruling Friday could leave Prince George’s County with millions less than it had budgeted in the next fiscal year, which will begin Wednesday.

Krystal Alves, an associate judge on the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County, temporarily blocked the county government’s transfer of $39 million to itself from the budget of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, a separate body overseen by the state.

She questioned whether it was “fiscally responsible” of the county to rely on money from the commission’s budget, which she said the county “may or may not have been entitled to.”

The commission administers the parks and planning departments in Prince George’s and Montgomery counties and the recreation department in Prince George’s. The planning boards for the two counties combine to serve as the commission’s governing body.

Advertise with us

The commission’s budget is made up of county property tax revenue, but state law determines how the money can be spent.

The commission sued Prince George’s County in early June, alleging the transfer violated state law and the county’s charter.

Explaining the temporary restraining order, Alves said the county had taken “extraordinary steps to obtain” the $39 million and determined the move would have caused the commission “immediate, substantial and irreparable harm.”

Brian Fischer, a spokesperson for County Executive Aisha Braveboy, referred a request for comment to the County Council. Another member of Braveboy’s office, Deputy Chief of Staff Devan Martin, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Council Chair Krystal Oriadha couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Advertise with us

She has said the council would defend the investments it voted for in the budget and that “we will fight for the principle that taxpayer dollars should be directed towards serving the public, not expanding bureaucracy.”

The Prince George’s County Council votes on the county’s budget before forwarding it to the executive for adoption, though it is not a defendant in the lawsuit.

The transfer at the center of the lawsuit is part of a decades-old program through which organizations and municipal governments can apply for expense reimbursements known as “project charges.”

Since taking leadership roles on the County Council, two members — Oriadha and Edward Burroughs — have come under scrutiny for pushing to divert millions of dollars in project charges to their preferred organizations, including one run by Oriadha’s close friend.

Under the program, council members decide which organizations they want to receive funding. The council has final say over the commission’s budget, and the council chair generally determines which groups to include in the budget for project charges.

Advertise with us

But the program relies on funding from the commission, and the commission decides whether to consider these organizations’ expenses for reimbursement.

The latest budget, however, calls for a transfer directly to Braveboy’s budget office, cutting the commission out of the project charge process.

In a prepared statement, William Spencer, the commission’s acting executive director, said the commission “stands ready to work collaboratively with County Council members to address the budget imbalance and develop a lawful framework for project charges.”

Attorneys for the commission and the county are expected to return to court in late September.