At its January meeting, the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) elected District of Columbia Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr. as its Chair for 2019. He served on the COG Board in 2018 as Vice Chair. Prince George’s County Council Member Derrick L. Davis and Arlington County Board Chair Christian Dorsey were elected as Vice Chairs of the board.

Under their leadership, the board will focus on two issues of great interest to area governments—the region’s housing shortfall and cybersecurity.

“After the landmark Metro agreement in 2018, I can think of no higher regional priority than to ensure a sufficient supply of affordably-priced housing for our current residents as well as the workers we need to fill the new jobs anticipated in the future,” White said. “I’m looking forward to applying COG’s expertise and connections to thoroughly analyze the issue at the regional level and help us identify solutions that we can implement in our local jurisdictions.”

Following the election of its officers, the COG Board adopted a workplan to address the need to increase the number of planned housing units by over 100,000 homes between now and 2045, as identified in a September 2018 COG analysis. The workplan directs COG and local government staff to study how many housing units can be accommodated within current comprehensive plans and zoning and within mixed-use Activity Centers and high-capacity transit stations. It also calls for studying appropriate price points for housing the anticipated jobs.   

The board identified cybersecurity as another focus for 2019 and will work on improving regional coordination to help prepare for, prevent, and respond to threats to local governments.

In addition to the focus on housing and cybersecurity, the board endorsed several regional legislative priorities in the areas of transportation funding, water quality, climate and energy innovation, air quality, workforce development, human services, and emergency preparedness.

The Board of Directors is COG’s governing body and is responsible for its overall policies, functions, and funds. Board members are appointed each year by the participating local governments and by caucuses of state legislative delegations from the region.

COG is an independent, nonprofit association that brings area leaders together from 24 local governments to address major regional issues in the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia.