Gary V. Hodge — Charles County Commissioner, was elected in November 2006.
He has more than 35 years of experience in public service, and as an
advisor to elected, civic and business leaders.
He began his career in
1971 as a law enforcement and public safety planner for the Metropolitan Washington (D.C.) Council of Governments. From 1974 to 1980, he served
in administrative positions with the Toledo (Ohio) Metropolitan Area
Council of Governments, including two years as Deputy Director. In 1980
he was appointed Executive Director of the Tri-County Council for
Southern Maryland, the regional planning and development agency for Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's counties, and served in this position through 1998.
Highlights
of his service include the successful campaign to protect and enhance
Southern Maryland's major naval installations during three rounds of defense
base realignment and closure (BRAC) in the 1990's, assistance to the
U. S. Navy in facilitating the consolidation of more than 6,000 civilian
high-technology jobs at the Patuxent Naval Air Station and the Naval Surface Warfare Center-Indian Head, and securing the
investment of $350 million by the State of Maryland in the region's
infrastructure. He received the 1999 Professional Achievement Award fromthe Maryland Chapter of the American Planning Association for the development of the "Southern Maryland Regional Strategy."
As an
appointed executive, Hodge was a member of the International City/County
Management Association for 25 years, and chaired ICMA's committee on regional councils. In 1999, he founded Regional
Policy Advisors, a private sector consulting firm providing government
relations, economic development, and strategic planning assistance to
elected, civic, and business leaders. As an advisor to Southern
Maryland's farmers, he was one of the principal architects of the
Maryland Tobacco Buyout Program. In December of 2007, Commissioner
Hodge was elected Chairman of the Tri-County Council of Southern Maryland, and was re-elected to a second term in 2008. Commissioner Hodge
earned a Bachelor's Degree from Emory University in Atlanta, is a
graduate of the Senior Executive Institute at the University of Virginia, and
studied Public Administration in the Key Executive Program at
The American University in Washington, D. C.
He lives in Waldorf and has three sons and four grandchildren.
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