Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) Division Chief Charles Bailey is no longer being considered for promotion to the post of fire chief, a spokesperson for County Executive Marc Elrich (D) told MoCo360 in an email Tuesday afternoon. Bailey was nominated by Elrich for the role in November.
“Following consultation with members of the County Council, a pathway forward for the nomination of Division Chief Charles Bailey as Chief of the Montgomery Fire and Rescue Services was not deemed feasible,” spokesperson Scott Peterson said in an email.
Elrich nominated Bailey in November to take over for Scott Goldstein who stepped down in July. Gary Cooper is currently serving as interim fire chief.
“Moving forward, the County Executive is currently evaluating alternative candidates to nominate as MCFRS Chief. We will provide notice to the public when a nomination letter for this position is submitted to the County Council,” Peterson wrote.
When Bailey’s nomination was announced in November, he had worked for MCFRS for 34 years, starting as a volunteer in Sandy Spring and working as a paramedic and as a member of the hazmat team. If appointed, Bailey would have been the county’s first Black fire chief.
Bailey declined to comment for this story when reached by phone by MoCo360 Tuesday afternoon.
Sonya Healy, the County Council’s legislative information officer, told MoCo360 on Friday that according to county code, Elrich would have been required to resubmit Bailey’s appointment or provide a new appointment for County Council confirmation since more than 60 days have passed since he first submitted it. The original nomination was transmitted on Nov. 17, 2023.
It is unclear why the council did not vote on Bailey’s nomination in a timely manner or why the nomination expired.
The decision not to proceed with Bailey’s nomination followed the release Friday of a memorandum by the Montgomery County Office of the Inspector General (OIG) concerning a senior MCFRS employee. According to the memorandum, a senior MCFRS employee engaged in misconduct in 2019 and 2021, violating the Code of Conduct. The identity of the employee is unknown.
Peterson told MoCo360 he could not comment on the identity of the unnamed fire official in the OIG report or whether Bailey was connected to the report because it is a personnel matter.
While the council held a closed session during its meeting Tuesday, Healy told MoCo360 in an email on Monday that it was not related to Bailey’s expired nomination or the OIG report.