(a) All amendments to the Zoning Code shall be by ordinance. Not more than 3 days after the introduction of an ordinance amending the Zoning Code, the County Council shall refer it to the Department of Land Use and the Planning Board for recommendation.
(b) Within 45 days the Department of Land Use and the Planning Board shall deliver its recommendation to the County Council who shall again publish the ordinance and establish a time and place at which a public hearing shall be held, provided that the County Council may by its rules and regulations require persons interested in the proposed ordinance to give it advance notice of intent to be heard thereupon. Upon the failure of the Department of Land Use and the Planning Board to deliver its recommendation to the County Council within 45 days, the County Council may proceed as provided in this subsection.