Local government, one step at a time.
CivicHabit shows you what Prince George's County is deciding on the issues you care about, who actually decides it, and when you have to speak up. Then it gives you a plan of next steps that fit where you are and the time you have.
Free to try. Built for residents of Prince George's County, Maryland.
You're Oriented. Next: Informed.
Your next steps
After this: On the record. File a comment in your own words.
Most people don't miss the meeting. They miss the deadline.
Three bodies in Prince George's County take public comment, and no two do it the same way. Sign up too late and you can't speak at all. No county page puts the rules side by side. CivicHabit does, for every item you follow.
| Body | Sign up by | Who speaks |
|---|---|---|
| County Council | 3:00 PM, the day before | Everyone who signs up |
| Planning Board | 12:00 noon, the Tuesday before | Everyone who signs up |
| Board of Education | 12:00 noon, the day of | The first 15 only, 3 minutes each |
The deadline is almost always earlier than the meeting, and it's the deadline that decides whether you get heard.
Sources: Clerk of the Council; M-NCPPC Prince George's County Planning Board; PGCPS Board Policy 8345. Checked October 2026.
We do the homework, so showing up is the easy part.
Plain English, with the source beside it
Every agenda item is explained in everyday words and linked to the official document it came from. When something isn't verified, we say so.
Who actually decides
Most people end up in the wrong room. We show you which body decides your issue, and who in it represents you.
The deadline comes first
Every item shows the cutoff to be heard, counting down from today, before anything else.
Your words, your name
We help you work out what to say. You write it and file it yourself through the official channel. A comment in the public record carries your name because you put it there.
A plan that fits where you are.
Nobody starts by testifying. My plan gives you a short list of next steps, each with how long it takes. Every step earns points, and one step in each stage moves you up the ladder.
The ladder never goes back down. Most weeks nothing is on the agenda for your issue, and that's the county's calendar, not a failure. So there are no streaks to break.
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0 · Oriented
You know which body decides your issue.
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1 · Informed
You read a real agenda item in plain English.
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2 · On the record
You filed a comment before the deadline.
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3 · Present coming soon
You showed up: in person, watching live, or in writing.
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4 · Persistent coming soon
You followed one issue all the way to a decision.
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5 · Multiplier coming soon
You brought someone else in.
The first pilot starts in January.
We're starting with residents of Prince George's County, in English and Spanish. The timing is on purpose: budget season is when local government has the most real decisions open to the public.
The Board of Education holds its budget hearings on three Wednesdays in February. Pilot members will know about them early, and know exactly how to be heard.
Join the January pilot
For Prince George's County residents. Signing up isn't a commitment. We'll email you the details before anything starts.
Other ways in.
Not in Prince George's County?
CivicHabit isn't running in your community yet. Tell us where you are and we'll let you know when it is. Every request helps us decide where to go next.
Work with us
Schools, PTOs, community groups, funders and local governments: if you want residents to show up better informed, let's talk.
Who makes this, and what we're not.
CivicHabit is an independent civic education project based in Prince George's County, Maryland. We're not part of Prince George's County government, we're not funded by it, and we don't speak for it. When we tell you what's on an agenda, we're reading the same public documents you can read yourself. We just read them first and explain what they say.
We explain how public processes work. That isn't legal advice, and we're not your lawyer. If a decision has legal consequences for you, talk to someone who can advise you on your situation.
And we don't write your comment or send it. CivicHabit will help you work out what to say, show you what makes a comment land, and tell you exactly where and by when it has to arrive. The words are yours, and you file it yourself through the county's official channel. That isn't a limitation. It's the reason it counts.