Germantown, Maryland

==Government==
Despite its size, Germantown has never been incorporated formally as a town or a city. It has no mayor or city council and is thus governed by [[Montgomery County, Maryland|Montgomery County]]. It is now represented by Democrat Marilyn Balcombe in the Montgomery County Council, after being represented by [[Craig L. Rice]] from 2010 through 2022.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mymcmedia.org/germantown-named-second-most-diverse-city-in-the-country/ |title=Germantown Named Second-most Diverse City in the Country |first=Aline |last=Barros |quote=Germantown is not an incorporated city but is administered by the Montgomery County government. |date=February 19, 2015 |work=MyMCMedia |access-date=March 25, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221105527/http://www.mymcmedia.org/germantown-named-second-most-diverse-city-in-the-country/ |archive-date=February 21, 2015 |df=mdy }}</ref> Germantown is part of two districts for the [[Maryland General Assembly]], 15 (ZIP code 20874), and 39 (ZIP code 20876).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Find My Representatives|url=http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Members/District|access-date=21 December 2020|website=Maryland General Assembly}}</ref> For the US Congress, it is part of [[Maryland's 6th congressional district|Maryland's 6th district]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=My Congressional District|url=https://www.census.gov/mycd/?st=24&cd=0|access-date=21 December 2020|website=United States Census Bureau}}</ref>

The [[United States Department of Energy|U.S. Department of Energy]] has its headquarters for the Office of Biological and Environmental Research in Germantown.<ref name="Biological">{{cite web|url=https://science.energy.gov/ber/|title=U.S. Office of Biological and Environmental Research|publisher=U.S. Department of Energy|access-date=September 5, 2017}}</ref> The [[United States Atomic Energy Commission|U.S. Atomic Energy Commission]] was moved from its location in downtown [[Washington, D.C.]], to the present-day U.S. Department of Energy building in Germantown because of fears of a [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] nuclear attack on the U.S. capital.<ref name="Nuclear">{{cite web|url=https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/AEC%20History.pdf|title=AEC History|date=July 1, 1983|publisher=U.S. Department of Energy|access-date=September 5, 2017}}</ref> At the time, Germantown was believed to be far enough from Washington, D.C., to avoid the worst effects of a nuclear strike on the city.<ref name="Nuclear"/> The facility now operates as an administration complex for the [[U.S. Department of Energy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://science.energy.gov/bes/about/organizational-history/germantown-natural-history/germantown-site-history/|title=Germantown Site History|publisher=U.S. Department of Energy|access-date=September 5, 2017}}</ref>