HomeMy WebLinkAbout25.10.15 - Minutes, Gaming CommissionWashington County
OFFICE OF GRANT MANAGEMENT
DIVISION OF BUDGET & FINANCE
Washington County Gaming Commission Meeting
Washington County Administration Building
100 W. Washington Street, Room 1601
Hagerstown, MD 21740
Minutes of Gaming Commission
Meeting in person and via zoom
October 15, 2025
Members Present: Matt Schnebly -Chair, Selena Wilkes, Marilee Kerns and
Dawn Wintermoyer
Members Absent: Paul Crampton, Jr. and Michael Stanford
Staff present: Maria Kramer -OGM Director, Carsten Ahrens -Sr. Grant Manager,
and Julie Mackereth
I. Opening -Welcome
Matt Schnebly -Chair called the meeting to order at 11 :02 a.m. He welcomed
everyone.
II. Citizens Participation
None scheduled
Ill. Minutes Approval: July 9, 2025
A motion was made by Marilee Kerns; seconded by Selena Wilkes to approve
July 9, 2025, minutes as written. motion approved
IV. Financial Report
Director Kramer reviewed the FY2026 Gaming Fund financial report and noted
there is a .69% decrease in funding compared to this same time last year.
V. Director's Comments
Director Kramer shared expressions of gratitude to the Gaming Commissioners on
behalf of the organizations awarded funding in FY25. She read aloud general thank-
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you messages and distributed individually addressed letters of appreciation to the
Commissioners who were present at the meeting.
VI. Old Business
None
VII. New Business
Election of Officers:
Nomination for Chairperson-Marilee Kerns nominated
Matt Schnebly. There were no other nominations. Matt accepted the nomination.
Nomination for Vice Chairperson -Matt Schnebly nominated
Marilee Kerns. There were no other nominations. Marilee accepted the
nomination.
By unanimous vote, the Commissioners elected Matt Schnebly as
Chairperson of the Gaming Commission for the 2025-2026 term.
Matt abstained from voting.
By unanimous vote, the Commissioners elected Marlee Kerns as Vice
Chairperson of the Gaming Commission for the 2025-2026 term.
Marlee abstained from voting.
Meeting Dates 2026:
Funding Cycle Application Review and Approval -Thursday, February 12th
Application Distribution and Instructions -Thursday, May 14th
Funding Hearing -Tuesday, June 9th
Funding Allocation Workshop -Tuesday, June 30th
Follow-Up on Election of Officers and 2026 Meeting Dates
Although the election of officers and proposed 2026 meeting dates were discussed at
the October 15th meeting, on October 17th, Maria (OGM Director) sent an email to all
Gaming Commissioners requesting a vote on the nominees for Gaming Chair and Vice
Chair, as well as the proposed 2026 funding hearing and funding workshop dates. The
Commissioners voted yes to the nominations, and as of now, the proposed hearing and
workshop date work for everyone.
Scoring Rubric -Carsten Ahrens, Sr. Grant Manager
Carsten introduced a scoring rubric aligned with the page request section of the gaming
application. The rubric was presented to the Commissioners for their consideration in
using it during the review process to help ensure more objective and consistent
funding.
U pdatc of Grant Report Procedures -Carsten shared an update regarding the grant
report process. The procedure has been revised to ensure greater consistency:
Grant reports are no longer part of the application process. Organizations that are
awarded funding must submit their grant report by June 30th of the following year. If
any portion of the funding allocation remains unspent, the unspent funds must be
returned to the Office of Grant Management {OGM) to be included with the next
funding cycle allocations.
Organizations that received funding in the previous year must submit their completed
grant report before applying for allocations in the current fiscal year.
VIII. Commissioner's Comments -The Commissioners were receptive to the rubric scoring
matrix. One suggestion raised was to consider lowering the current $100,000 cap per
application. This will be discussed further at the application review meeting on February
12th.
XI. Adjournment
A motion to adjourn was mo.de. by Matt Schnebly; seconded by Selena Wilkes.
The motion carried. The meeting was adjourned at 12:01 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Julie Mackeretb
Senior Office Associate, OGM
Reviewed by:
---~ Maria Kramer, Director
~~<pmOn-