Nine nonprofits across Baltimore will receive grants from JPMorgan Chase & Co. to tackle the city’s vacant housing crisis. The bank will distribute roughly $4 million to nonprofit organizations and bring them together to create what it is calling the Baltimore Housing Innovation Cohort. The cohort‘s goal is to increase the housing supply in the city and make home ownership more affordable.

United Airlines said Tuesday that it is starting a $1.5 billion share buyback as the carrier reported higher-than-expected earnings for the busy summer travel season and forecast strong results for the last three months of the year. United expects to earn an adjusted $2.50 to $3.00 a share in the fourth quarter, compared to $2.00 a share a year earlier and the $2.68 analysts polled by LSEG estimated.

Maryland utility regulators want to overhaul the way the region’s electric grid operator ensures reliable service, saying the current process saddles customers with unfair and excessive rates. The Maryland Public Service Commission, a state agency that regulates public utilities, has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reform an auction process used by PJM Interconnection, the grid operator for the mid-Atlantic region.

The Salisbury Police Department (SPD) is celebrating a generous donation that will help ensure K9 units are safe in all weather. The Blue Heron Agility Association of Delaware (BHAD) is providing $4,000 to the department. Police say the money will help outfit two SPD vehicles with HOT-N-POP systems. “It gives me clarity in knowing that I can keep my partner safe, just like he keeps me safe,” said PFC Daniel Derasmo, a K9 handler for SPD.

Maryland is continuing to make strides in the fast-growing cyber and skilled trades industries. In January, Gov. Wes Moore announced the establishment of the Maryland Cybersecurity Task Force in response to rising threats within the state and in September Howard Community College (HCC) broke ground on a Workforce Development and Trades Center.

Abortion rights advocates trying to drum up support for Maryland’s reproductive freedom ballot question have vastly outraised and outspent their opponents — pulling in more than five times the funds and unleashing a new $500,000 ad campaign three weeks before Election Day. Backed by a hefty investment from Planned Parenthood and other large donations, the advocates raised more than $752,000 and spent $400,000 through early October with their organization, Freedom in Reproduction Maryland, according to new campaign finance reports released Friday.

Three Baltimore County Council members have proposed a resolution for Baltimore County to condemn a 70-mile power line project that they say will ruin farmland, seize private homes and lower property values. The Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) was first announced in December, when regional transmission operator PJM awarded a contract to the New Jersey-based Public Service Enterprise Group (PSEG) for development.

A couple of special guests introduced Stevie Wonder in Baltimore on Tuesday night. Barack Obama, the nation’s 44th president, and former first lady Michelle Obama stood on either side of the legendary singer as he opened his show on the 11-city “Sing Your Song! As We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart” tour at CFG Bank Arena. “This is amazing,” Wonder said before holding the mic for the former president.

Tuesday marked the first day that local boards of election could begin canvassing mail-in ballots. Marylanders have embraced voting by mail since it began en masse during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the early numbers revealed Tuesday are telling a story about the 2024 general election. By the start of Tuesday, elections officials said 262,000 Maryland voters had already returned a ballot, including about 35,000 in Anne Arundel County — more than a third of the total expected and a sign that voters are engaged and excited, elections officials told 11 News.

Drivers in Montgomery County will soon see “noise cameras” on local roads after the County Council unanimously passed legislation Tuesday that aims to reduce vehicular noise emissions. The bill, sponsored by council Vice President Kate Stewart (D-Dist. 4) and councilmember Natali Fani-González (D-Dist. 6) with co-sponsorship from the rest of the council, is based on state legislation passed earlier this year by the Maryland General Assembly.