In an October 9 news release, the  Maryland Rural Counties Coalition announced that it had expanded to nine members.  The Coalition was formed to give rural counties a greater voice on policy matters that affect their jurisdictions and intends to coordinate with MACo on legislative issues.  From the news release:

The Maryland Rural Counties Coalition has expanded now to nine counties.  With a unanimous vote today, the Caroline County Commissioners voted to join the Coalition.  Previously, on October 2 the Wicomico County Council and County Executive present voted unanimously to join the Coalition.

The Coalition now consists of Allegany, Caroline, Carroll, Cecil, Dorchester, Frederick Somerset, Washington and Wicomico Counties, representing 919,776 rural Maryland residents.