Before Calvert County’s school board would vote on a contract with Bolton Partners, one member wanted the paperwork. All of it. The list ran from a signed agreement written for Calvert, down to any record of money the firm might collect from insurance carriers or benefit vendors tied to the school system.
The board then voted 5-0 to remove the bid approvals item from its action agenda. That item held the Bolton contract, so the contract cannot move forward until members get what they asked for.
The member said the package the board received included Prince George’s County’s cooperative agreement but nothing specific to Calvert County Public Schools. Missing, the member said, were an executed CCPS contract with any purchase orders, task orders and amendments; Bolton’s pricing or financial proposal to CCPS; and the scope of work with all incorporated terms and conditions. The member also asked for the conflict-of-interest disclosure form that appeared as Appendix M in the original Prince George’s County Public Schools request for proposals, plus any broker-of-record designations and any disclosure of compensation or commissions, direct or indirect, that Bolton could receive from carriers or vendors connected to CCPS.
The member tied the request to recent history. Bolton, the member said, helped the district with the Medicare Advantage decisions made last year, which “caused some issues.” Having the records, the member said, would let the board make an informed decision.
That decision came on Oct. 9, 2025, when the board approved moving Medicare-eligible retirees to a CareFirst Medicare Advantage plan. Staff forecast about $1.3 million in annual savings. Months later, retirees urged the board to restore an opt-out, citing prior authorizations, denials, delays in care and higher out-of-pocket costs. CCPS has since said retirees can choose between the CareFirst plan and a supplemental option for coverage starting Jan. 1, 2027, with enrollment materials going out this month.
Price came up too. Another board member pointed to the Prince George’s proposal, which set a not-to-exceed amount of $450,000, and noted that county’s school system is about 10 times Calvert’s size. The member said Calvert’s ceiling should be closer to $45,000 and asked whether that figure could be obtained. No dollar amount for Calvert was given during the meeting.
No one alleged wrongdoing by Bolton Partners at the meeting. The requests were for documents, and the board’s vote simply puts the contract on hold until they arrive. The meeting did not set a date for the item to return.
The pause is one piece of a busy night for the board. Members approved the consent agenda 5-0 and later cleared a $2.36 million federal grant for the Mary Harrison Center.
