Candidates vying for the Baltimore mayoral seat laid out their plans to tackle environmental issues that face the city. On Wednesday evening, a dozen of the nearly 20 candidates sat in a semi-circle on a stage inside Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church on Reisterstown Road to answer questions derived from environmental advocacy organizations. “They’re here to serve the community and when you’re able to listen to the questions and concerns of those who actually live in the community then you understand what the issues are,” Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church Associate Minister, Tracy Davis-Hunt said.

 

This session, Maryland lawmakers are considering several bills aimed at improving the lives of incarcerated individuals and helping them navigate their time outside prison. “My whole belief is that a repeat violent offender is a policy failure on our part, of not ensuring we are getting the resources to those who are incarcerated so they don’t re-offend,” said Del. Marlon Amprey, a Baltimore City Democrat who says he represents the district with the state’s highest recidivism rate.

 

Macy’s, a staple at Baltimore area malls, plans to close 150 department stores in a turnaround plan, the company said Tuesday. The retailer did not announce specific store closures, saying it would target 150 “underproductive locations,” about 30% of its store base. About 50 will close this year. Macy’s operates 14 Maryland stores, including seven in the Baltimore region. Those locations include Annapolis Mall, Security Square Mall, Harford Mall, Mall in Columbia, Marley Station in Glen Burnie, White Marsh Mall and Towson Town Center.

A top Democrat in the House is proposing nearly $90 million in taxes on alcohol and cigarettes as part of an effort to address billions of dollars in projected budget gaps. Democratic leaders in the House and Senate do not agree on how to tackle the revenue shortfall issue this session. Del. Ben Barnes (D-Prince George’s and Anne Arundel), the chair of the House Appropriations Committee and others would like to prime the pump now so tax dollars are flowing when the budget gap widens.

Maryland farms are a crucially important food-producing asset of our state. Unfortunately, those rural areas and associated small-town economies are in the crosshairs of a giant land grab by out-of-state corporate energy interests. The energy industry (largely represented by solar developers) has weaponized “climate change” as a low-cost way to capture many tens of thousands of acres of Maryland’s food production capacity. Do we really have to let that happen?

A bill in the General Assembly may completely change how future generations of students get into Maryland’s public universities. If passed by the legislature, Senate Bill 5 would have Maryland adopt a guaranteed admissions policy similar to states like Texas, where the top 10% of graduates in each high school gain automatic admission to public universities. State Sen. Malcolm Augustine introduced the bill to ensure that higher education remains diverse after affirmative action was declared unconstitutional last year.

Juvenile crime has been the subject of intense debate over the past few years, as Maryland has seen a major uptick in it. The crime ranges from the notorious “squeegee kids” who harassed people in their cars, to the “Kia challenge,” which saw numerous youths exploit the vulnerabilities of certain Kia and Hyundai cars to steal them, to murder, robbery, gang violence and more. Fox45 Baltimore provided me with the platform to sit down with the governor of Maryland, Wes Moore; Baltimore City State’s Attorney Ivan Bates; and Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy during a critical town hall Monday night to discuss the state of criminality among juveniles in the state

The father of a man who was missing in Maryland for six days last October urged lawmakers to pass a bill to create the same kind of large scale alerts that take place when children are kidnapped for when older adults go missing. Jimmy Hall told a Senate committee in Annapolis on Tuesday it is urgent that the Purple Alert be created. “It would be insensitive for this bill not to get passed,” Hall said through sobs. “The Purple Alert can be the voice for future families — the voice that Rashawn didn’t have.”

 

In 2022, Maryland passed the Child Interrogation Protection Act, which, among other things, requires that children speak with a lawyer before being interrogated by police. This year, the Maryland General Assembly is considering removing this safeguard by allowing parents, rather than attorneys, to act as children’s legal advocates. As psychologists who work in the legal system, we strongly oppose this change, which incorrectly assumes that parents provide the same degree of legal protection as lawyers do.

The gambling boom is growing — and its next move could put poker chips in Marylanders’ pockets. Just over a year after online sports betting became legal in the state, two bills in the General Assembly seek to give voters the option to legalize internet gaming, which is gambling via online slot machines, blackjack, poker and other casino games. Lawmakers heard testimony earlier this week from proponents, including casino and industry leaders, and opponents, including those concerned about the effects of problem gambling and addiction.