CHARLES COUNTY GOVERNMENT
La Plata, Maryland

Standing Left to Right Gary V. Hodge, Samuel N. Graves, Jr., and Reuben B. Collins ll Seated left to right Dr. Edith J. Patterson, Vice President and Wayne Cooper, President

We are pleased to welcome you to Charles County, a community on the grow. Charles County is a community that respects heritage while welcoming and celebrating the diversity of new residents. We are blessed with a natural environment that still includes beautiful open spaces, rural areas, wildlife and wildlife habitats, scenic rivers, and waterfront vistas. We are also proud of our growing urban areas and the amenities and opportunities that are part of smart growth and dynamic development.

The future of Charles County depends upon creating and sustaining a solid foundation of quality public education, public safety, economic development and comprehensive planning, which will enable our County to thrive and prosper. To achieve these goals, we concentrate our funding in these areas. Our highest priorities are public education and public safety, which receive the majority of new revenue that is available to the County. However, there are other critical functions that government must perform, from emergency services to road maintenance to parks and recreation to social programs. Adequate resources for these and programs and services are required for quality of life for all of our citizens.

The County continues to develop and implement public/private partnerships and policies that attract business and industry that will bring quality, high-paying jobs to the County and provide the needed infrastructure to improve our economic base. Standards for development were adopted to improve property values and enhance neighborhoods, as well as assure that adequate public facilities are available to accommodate growth, i.e., schools, water and sewer services, and roads. We are implementing a comprehensive transportation strategy to expand, improve, and expedite the construction of the County’s road system to complement the decision on the upgrade of U.S. 301 through Waldorf and a future Western Bypass of Waldorf within the County. In addition, we have added several recreational amenities, including a state-of-the-art Skatepark, constructed a new public safety communications system and a new comprehensive high school, and consistently increased the number of sworn officers in the Sheriff’s Office.

Through prudent, conservative, long-range fiscal management policies, the County is on sound financial footing. We have been able to receive financial upgrades from Wall Street, maintain a healthy fund balance, meet our long-range financial commitments, and maintain current programs in spite of economic downturns and unforeseen tragedies that have had negative economic effects at both the national and local levels, including the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, and the April 28, 2002, tornado, which wreaked havoc across 24 miles of the County.

We invite you to review our efforts to reach our goals: to improve economic development, infrastructure, the effectiveness and efficiency of government, and comprehensive planning; to support the achievement of educational benchmarks, and maintain a high level of public safety to make Charles County a great place to live, work, and play.

Sincerely,
The Charles County Commissioners

Mission Statement

The mission of Charles County Government is to provide our citizens the highest quality service possible in a timely, efficient, and courteous manner. To achieve this goal, our government must be operated in an open and accessible atmosphere, be based on comprehensive long- and short-term planning, and have an appropriate managerial organization tempered by fiscal responsibility.

Vision Statement

Charles County is a place where all people thrive and businesses grow and prosper; where the preservation of our heritage and environment is paramount; where government services to its citizens are provided at the highest level of excellence; and where the quality of life is the best in the nation.