Baltimore County Council passes bill to address school overcrowding

Last week, the Baltimore County Council passed a bill that would restrict new development in neighborhoods with overcrowded schools.

Developers will now need to seek approval from a new county-appointed committee before obtaining a building permit in areas where schools are at 105% or more of their state-allotted capacity.

“Most people would agree that anything above 100 percent means a school exceeds its capacity, but that is not the case with the current APFO,” Councilman David Marks said when the legislation was introduced.

In the past, schools were considered overcrowded if they were at 115% or more of their official capacity.

“Our goal really was to get to 100%, but when we looked at the practically of that, we thought this was a really good step in the right direction,” said Councilman Mike Ertel. “At 105%, the schools are still manageable.”

Sparrows Point High School is well over that limit, with more than 1,100 students and a capacity of 871. In the 2023-24 school year, Patapsco High School was just under 100% of its capacity, with 1,312 students and a state-rated capacity of 1,334.

At nearly 150% capacity, Dundalk High School is one of the most overcrowded schools in the county, with more than 2,100 students enrolled and room for only 1,446. Construction is already underway on two new additions, which are expected to raise the school’s state-rated capacity to 2,163.

The special school capacity committee will include a member of the county’s planning department and others appointed by the county council, county executive, the superintendent of schools. All 11 members must be confirmed by the county council.

The legislation is expected to go into effect July 18 unless vetoed by County Executive Johnny Olszewski. In a statement shared after the vote, Olszewski said that his office will be carefully reviewing the bill in the coming days.

“We share concerns regarding school overcrowding ... but our administration has also expressed valid challenges with this complex bill, including its detrimental impacts on Baltimore County’s moral and legal obligations to address attainable housing,” Olszewski said.