Pepco Giving Free Trees to Help Customers Save Energy 

Customers can reserve a free tree through the
Arbor Day Foundation starting today!

WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 11, 2019) – Pepco is giving away 1,000 free trees to residential customers through the Arbor Day Foundation’s Energy-Saving Trees program. This initiative helps customers conserve energy and reduce household energy use through strategic tree planting. For the ninth year, Pepco is stepping up to support this important environmental and energy saving program. Starting today, customers can reserve one free tree per household by visiting arborday.org/pepco.
 
"We value the strong and important relationships we’ve built and continue to cultivate with our communities across the District of Columbia and Maryland over the last 100 plus years," said Donna Cooper, Pepco region president. "While we are known for our commitment to providing clean, safe, reliable, and affordable energy service to our customers, we also see it as our duty and obligation to give back to the communities that we are a part of and that we are privileged to serve. Seeing the outcomes of our continued contributions and volunteerism, with our outstanding nonprofit partners, is another reminder of our deep connection to our communities and the vested interest we have in their continued success."
 
Customers will have the ability to choose from a selection of trees, including Redbud, Crepe Myrtle, River Birch, Red Oak, Red Maple, most available in varying sizes.  
One-gallon trees will be delivered to customers’ homes between April and May. All three- and five gallon trees will be available for pickup only during company planned events in April. More information on these events can be found online during the reservation process.  
 
Through the “Right Tree, Right Place” tree planting program, Pepco is also offering 250 trees on a first-come, first-served basis to District of Columbia homeowners in partnership with Casey Trees, a D.C.-based nonprofit committed to restoring and protecting the nation's capital’s tree canopy.  District residents can request up to two trees by calling Casey Trees at 202-833-4010. Casey Trees will send out a professional arborist to evaluate the landscape and recommend a suitable tree for the area. Once the appropriate tree is chosen, Casey Trees will come to the home and plant the tree. For the consultation and planting valued at $400, a co-payment of $50 per tree payable to Casey Trees, is required prior to planting.
 
Through the Arbor Day Foundation’s website, customers also have the power to explore interactive tools, including a tool to help customers determine the best location on their property to plant their tree for energy savings benefits. Properly planted trees can provide a homeowner many benefits, such as reducing energy use through summer shading and by slowing winter winds. 
 
Throughout a tree’s growth period, trees have the potential to lower energy bills by 15 to 30 percent. Additionally, trees provide benefits to a community by improving air and water quality, reducing stormwater runoff, and adding to the visual appeal of a neighborhood. In fact, since 2012, Pepco customers have planted more than 17,650 trees, saving nearly 29 million kWh, and removing close to 363,584 lbs. of air pollutants from the atmosphere. 
 
Prior to receiving a tree, Pepco reminds customers to call 811 to have utility-owned underground lines marked before they start to dig. One free call to 811 connects you to Miss Utility, which notifies the appropriate utility companies of your intent to dig. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants a call to 811. 
 
Customers unable to reserve a free tree through the internet are encouraged to call 855-670-2772 to secure a tree.
 
To learn more, readers are encouraged to visit The Source, Pepco’s online news room. Find additional information about Pepco by visiting www.pepco.com.

Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pepcoconnect and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pepcoconnect. Our mobile app is available at  www.pepco.com/mobileapp.

Tax Return Reminder (MD Form 502)

 
Revenues received through our residents’ paid income taxes remain the most significant source of Village revenues. We need our residents’ help to ensure that all income tax revenue due to the Village actually gets here. This money goes directly to services benefiting Village residents.  Village residents DO NOT pay any additional income taxes to live in Chevy Chase Village. By law, as a municipality, the Village receives a portion of the tax you pay to Montgomery County. It is very important, however, that the State of Maryland knows to return this revenue to the Village. Consequently, please take special care to mark your tax return as shown below (if filing electronically, there is a character limit, therefore, you may have to use the abbreviation 
“Ch Ch Village”). 

Please remember that MD Form 502 was updated last year with a separate political subdivision section located under your mailing address.  When you complete your Maryland income tax return, remember to put Chevy Chase Village under “Maryland Political Subdivision” and include 1613 the “4 digit Political Subdivision Code” to ensure the Village receives our share of the state income tax (see below).   

Click on the image below to see the full form

Beware of Mulch Volcanoes

As landscape crews begin spring garden cleanups, please be sure they do not create the infamous “mulch volcanoes” which cause damage to trees. 

Deciduous trees can benefit from the application of a 2-3” layer of mulch around the base of the tree. The mulch can help maintain moisture, reduce weed germination and protect trunks from lawn care equipment. Mulch materials can be shredded hardwood, pine bark, pine fines or compost. Unfortunately, over-zealous landscape crews frequently apply too much material and mound mulch against the trunk of the tree, hence the term “mulch volcanoes”. This is detrimental to the health of the tree and can cause serious decline. Remember not to pile the mulch around the stem of the tree.

Visit the following website for tree care tips, including an article detailing proper mulching technique:

http://www.treesaregood.com/treecare/mulching.aspx

2019 Board of Managers Election

Four Board seats will be up for election this spring. The current Board members whose terms are expiring in June are Gary Crockett, Minh Le, Richard Ruda, and David Winstead.  Gary Crockett, Richard Ruda, and David Winstead have indicated that they currently intend to run again.  Ms. Le has decided not to run for reelection.

Any Village resident may run for a seat on the Board provided he/she is a qualified voter in Montgomery County, has resided in Chevy Chase Village for at least one year prior to the election and files the required Certificate of Candidacy and Financial Disclosure Statement in proper form.  Board members serve two-year, staggered terms.  If the number of qualified candidates equals the number of available seats, the candidates will be declared elected at the Annual Meeting on Monday, April 15, 2019 (the meeting begins at 7:30 p.m.).  If the number of candidates exceeds the number of available seats, a contested election will be held on Saturday, May 4, 2019.
 
The Village Election Supervisors oversee Village elections, including receiving nominations to serve on the Board of Managers.  Residents interested in running for a seat should please contact Election Supervisors Chair Mary Sheehan by email at msheehan246@aol.com so that the Elections Supervisors can begin to plan for the election.    
 
To qualify as a candidate, an individual, including sitting Board members, must submit to the Village office a completed Certificate of Candidacy along with a Financial Disclosure Statement, at any time after February 4 (90 days prior to Election Day), but by no later than April 4 (30 days prior to Election Day). Upon receiving both completed forms, the Village Manager will submit the Financial Disclosure Statement to the Village Ethics Commission, which will review the form within ten days of filing for compliance with the provisions of the Public Ethics Code.  Please note, however, that candidates are not certified to appear on the ballot until the Certificate of Candidacy and Financial Disclosure Statement have been reviewed and determined to be filed in proper form.
Forms are available in the Village office or by email request to the Village Manager Shana Davis-Cook at shana.davis-cook@montgomerycountymd.gov.  For more information regarding Board elections, please visit the dedicated page on the Village’s website by clicking on “Board of Managers Elections” under Quick Links on the homepage. 

Board of Managers:
Financial Disclosure Q & A

In 2012, the State’s financial disclosure requirements for elected officials were extended to include municipalities like the Village.  If you are considering serving on the Board, you may have questions about those requirements.  I’ll try to anticipate and answer some of them here, and we also encourage you to contact any Board member or the Village Manager for any additional questions or discussion.  You can find the disclosure form on the Village web site by selecting Government / Board of Managers / Board of Managers Elections / Candidate Financial Disclosure Form.

What do I have to disclose?  The disclosures are annual and are due in April.  All of the following disclosures are for the previous calendar year, like your tax return.  You need to disclose the following:

• Some details about any property you own, including your home.
• Ownership or interests in corporations or partnerships.  This includes holdings of stock in public corporations.
• Purchases or sales of stock or other interests in corporations or partnerships.

Financial Disclosure Q & A”

• Sources of earned income
• Any involvement (ownership, employment, gifts, debt) with the Village or any entity doing business with the Village, for yourself or your immediate family.

How public is this information?  It’s public but not published.  Anyone may request a copy of your disclosure forms, but you may choose to be informed of any such requests.  Your home address will be redacted when the disclosure form is provided.

Am I revealing my net worth to the world?  No.  Some forms of wealth and income (see next question) are not reported.  For ownership and transactions you do have to report, you can use ranges for percentage of ownership (less than 1%, 1-5%, 6-10% or over 10%) or number of shares (0-100, 101-250, 251-500, over 500).

What about CDs, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds?  You are not required to report bank interest or certificates of deposit, publicly traded mutual funds, or exchange-traded funds.

How hard is this?  The annual report is due at roughly the same time as your income taxes, and the information you’ve gathered for your taxes covers almost all of what you need for the financial disclosure.  Some Board members have their accountants complete the disclosure documents, and some fill them out themselves.  If your finances aren’t too complicated it should only take an hour or two per year.

Please be a Considerate Owner/Handler at the Brookville Road Dog Park

Are You Prepared?

As we have experienced during various seasonal events, it is important to be prepared for local weather emergencies. In order the assist residents in their preparedness, the Village in partnership with the Montgomery County Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (OEMHS) offer a number of helpful tools, plans and free alerts to assist and keep you informed.

Village Website and Blast Email System – Have you signed up for the Village’s blast email system? This is the Village's primary method of communication with residents. The Village has 2 email lists you can sign-up for:

Urgent News Alert – include messages such as criminal activity, neighborhood disruptions such as water main breaks, power outages and road closures and major weather events.

General News Alerts – include messages about Board and committee meetings, community events, changes in public services such as refuse/recycling collection schedules and upcoming road closures.

To sign-up for the blast email system visit the Village website at www.chevychasevillagemd.gov and click on the tablet icon at the top of the Village’s homepage.
 

Alert Montgomery – Alert Montgomery is the official emergency communications service for Montgomery County, MD. During major crisis, emergency or severe weather events, Montgomery County will send event updates, warnings and instructions directly to you on any of your devices. To sign-up for Alert Montgomery please visit the OEMHS website www.montgomerycountymd.gov/oemhs and click on the “Alert Montgomery” link at the top of the page.

Family and Community Preparedness Information – Emergencies can take many forms and occur with or without warning. By taking a few simple steps now, you can ensure that you, your family and your community are better prepared to handle emergencies. To assist in your family planning, please visit the Village’s emergency preparedness page, www.chevychasevillagemd.gov/emergencyprep for helpful tools and links. Another important tool the Village has created to assist you in your preparedness efforts is our House Check Program. Always request a House Check when you are leaving town and ensure that your emergency contacts are up to date with the Village office.

For additional information please visit the Village’s website at www.chevychasevillagemd.gov and click on the “Are you prepared? – Emergency Preparedness Tips” link listed in the Quick Links on the homepage.

Emergency Contact Sheet

EMERGENCY - 911
 
Chevy Chase Village Police 
Non Emergency/24hrs - 301-654-7300

Montgomery County Police 
Non Emergency/24hrs - 301-279-8000

Bethesda - Chevy Chase Rescue Squad - 301-652-0077

Chevy Chase Fire Dept
(Opposite Columbia Country Club) - 240-773-4707

Bethesda Fire Dept
(Wisconsin Ave and Bradley Blvd) - 240-773-4706

National Capital Poison Center
(George Washington University Hospital) - 800-222-1222

Utilities
 

Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO)

Emergency-Live wires down, power failure - 877-737-2662

Customer Service - 202-833-7500

Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission

Emergency - 301-206-4002

Complaints, Leaks, Information - 301-206-4001

Washington Gas

Emergency - 703-750-1400

Information & Customer Service - 703-750-1000

Comcast - 800-934-6489

Verizon - 800-837-4966

**A cut out sheet is also located on page two of the January 2019 Crier.

You are receiving this email because you are subscribed to receive general news updates from Chevy Chase Village. Did you know the Village sends out urgent news updates as well, click here to sign-up.