On April 10, the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments hosted the Capital Caucus Reception in National Harbor in Prince George’s County, which brought together state legislative members, who represent the entire metropolitan Washington region.

Maryland and Virginia state Delegates and Senators joined Councilmembers of the District of Columbia and local elected officials on the COG Board of Directors for a post-legislative session wrap-up. It was an opportunity for the elected officials to get to know one another better and discuss how to strengthen collaboration on several shared priorities in Annapolis, Richmond and the District of Columbia. Prince George’s County Executive Tara Jackson, Maryland State Delegates Jamila Woods and Kris Valderrama, Prince George’s County Council Chair Edward P. Burroughs III, and Council Vice Chair Krystal Oriadha provided welcome introductions.

Virginia Delegate Mark Sickles, Maryland Senator Brian Feldman, and District of Columbia Council Chair Phil Mendelson briefed the group on outcomes from their 2025 legislative sessions and ongoing priorities. COG Executive Director Clark Mercer and COG Board Chair and Fairfax County Supervisor Rodney Lusk also provided remarks, noting COG’s unique role as the one place that regularly connects area leaders to address regional issues and the need to forge greater local-state collaboration moving forward. 

All of the speakers noted the importance of working more closely together to respond to the impacts of federal workforce cuts and partner on a plan to diversify the region’s economy and ensure long-term resilience and growth, a top priority for the COG Board.

Sickles, Feldman, and Mendelson also cited past work by DC, Maryland, and Virginia to secure dedicated funding for Metro’s maintenance in 2018 and additional funding for Metro to meet its FY 2025 budget gap. They noted that the region will need to build on this collaborative work as area officials focus on the long-term financial sustainability of Metro and the region’s entire transit network, which is the focus of the current DMVMoves initiative.

The Council of Governments plans to reconvene the group before the 2026 legislative session as part of expanded outreach to the state assemblies. COG hopes to be the hub for coordination on legislation in Richmond, Annapolis, and DC impacting the DMV region.

The reception was sponsored by G.S. Proctor & Associates and McGuire Woods Consulting.