As of Monday, July 1st, restaurants and bars are able to purchase liquor from any distributor they want. In the past, those same businesses needed to go through one of the county dispensaries. Peter Roskovich, owner of Adam’s Taphouse Grill, already took advantage of his newfound freedom. “We met with our distributor Breakthrough Beverage this morning, my rep. Sean Wilson came in,” said Roskovich.

Howard County could soon have its own independent office dedicated to rooting out public corruption, 11 News Investigates has learned. Howard County Council Vice Chairwoman Liz Walsh, D-District 1, told 11 News Investigates that she will introduce legislation to create an Office of the Inspector General at Monday night’s legislative session of the Howard County Council.

 

The collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge will cost the state an estimated $141 million in lost toll revenue over six years and may bring toll increases a year sooner than expected. That projected loss makes up the lion’s share of the revised forecast that includes a decrease in toll revenues across all facilities. “The forecast reflects a $153 million decline in toll revenues throughout the 2024 through 2030 forecast period,” Chantel Green, director of finance for the authority, said during a meeting of the Maryland Transportation Authority board Friday.

Thousands of kids in low-income families lose access to free meals from their schools when students are released for summer break, even if those families still struggle to afford food during the summer months. That’s why hunger relief advocates are excited about a new federal benefit that will provide extra funds to help eligible families afford their groceries, aiming to bridge the so-called “summer hunger gap.”

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled for the first time that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, extending the delay in the Washington criminal case against Donald Trump on charges that he plotted to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss and all but ending prospects that the former president could be tried before the November election.

The Baltimore County Council voted Monday night to advance a measure that would add two new members in hopes of producing a governing body that looks more like its increasingly diverse population. The plan would increase the number of county council members from seven to nine, the first major change to its membership in decades. The council is now all-male and nearly all-white, while people of color now make up half of the county population.

Starting Monday, Metro is changing its shuttle bus service for riders affected by the shutdown of four Red Line stations in Montgomery County, Maryland, aiming to improve travel times and decrease bus congestion. The “Limited 2” shuttle, which stops at Forest Glen, Silver Spring and Fort Totten stations, will be replaced by two new, “more-efficient express shuttle loops,” Metro said in a news release.

At Baile Cask & Kettle, you can soon grab a bagel with your breakfast brew — then come back for pub fare and another brew after work. In a few weeks, owners Christopher and Kerry Keene hope to open the much-anticipated bagel shop and American-Irish pub in the Updegraff building at 53 W. Washington St. in downtown Hagerstown.

The introduction of a bill to establish criteria for a temporary moratorium on residential growth in Frederick County was postponed from this Tuesday to July 16, but County Councilmembers have different explanations as to why. Councilmember Steve McKay, a Republican who sponsored the proposed moratorium legislation, has alleged that the bill was pulled from Tuesday’s agenda in an attempt by Democrats to kill it upon introduction.

After 10 years and millions of dollars spent, scientists, government officials and environmentalists agree that the latest agreement to restore the Chesapeake Bay will fall short of its 2025 deadline. So what now? The path forward became a bit more clear Monday, after a key Chesapeake Bay Program committee released its suggestions for “Beyond 2025,” opening a 60-day public comment period.