Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks (D) presented an optimistic picture of county revenue on Wednesday as she unveiled a $5.4 billion spending plan for the budget year beginning July 1, but she again took issue with how much the county has to pay to implement sweeping state education reforms. She fears the ballooning costs of education mandates will swallow up the county’s resources.

Homeowners in Frederick are concerned about their safety after a tanker crashed and exploded along a busy highway earlier this month. State and local leaders held a meeting Wednesday to hear the concerns of those residents. “It wasn’t good,” Frederick resident Jeff Oranczak said. “It wasn’t good at all.” Oranczak and his wife live along U.S. Route 15 in Frederick, right near where a tanker truck crashed into a tree and exploded on March 4. Firefighters said the truck was carrying flammable liquid.

Residents in Frederick sounded off after a tanker explosion killed a driver and damaged several homes and vehicles earlier this month. Wednesday night, they received a promising response. Frederick City held a community discussion Wednesday night discussing the incident and the steps the city and Maryland are taking moving forward. The biggest issue residents like Lamar Reese brought forward is a lack of barriers between U.S. Route 15 and nearby neighborhoods.

 

 

The nation’s largest grid operator is warning that it might not have enough electric generation in the future to guarantee reliability. And it comes as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission convenes a forum on the multibillion-dollar capacity market PJM operates to ensure there’s enough power to meet demand even during grid emergencies, such as during Winter Storm Elliott last year.

Last year doctors like myself were thrilled when the Maryland General Assembly passed the Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program. As we look forward to watching the program benefit our patients and their families, we urge the General Assembly to ensure that the costs to implement the program are shared equitably. The Time to Care Act passed in 2022 was a huge step forward for Marylanders and their loved ones.

 

Diamond Sports Group, the largest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, toppled by a more than $8 billion debt load. The company, which is an unconsolidated and independently run subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Texas. The company said in a release it is finalizing a restructuring support agreement with a majority of its debt holders and Sinclair to wipe out its debt load.

 

We need free, healthier, and equitable meals for students of all ages in Maryland schools. Growing up in Prince George’s County while having one parent be more present than the other has been tough. When I think about the financial stress my mother dealt with as me and my siblings grew up, I will always vividly remember me and my siblings’ experiences with public school lunches.

Maryland is taking steps toward adopting a California rule approved last year that requires all new vehicles sold in the state to be electric by 2035. The state Department of the Environment is expected to approve a new regulation, which would go into effect in September, that phases out new gas-powered car sales over the next dozen years, state officials announced this week. Fast, informative and written just for locals. Get The 7 DMV newsletter in your inbox every weekday morning.

A businesswoman appointed by Gov. Wes Moore to serve on the powerful Maryland Stadium Authority board made a passionate plea to state lawmakers who are considering whether to confirm her but are concerned about her past legal and financial issues. Yolanda Maria Martinez said she had moved on from those issues — which include a personal bankruptcy and lawsuits against her for unpaid debts — and would bring a “fiscally responsible” background to the role that, among other duties, makes decisions about leases and renovations for Baltimore’s sports stadiums.

Jason Perkins-Cohen will leave his longtime position as director of the Mayor’s Office of Employment Development next week, according to the mayor’s office. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott accepted the Perkins-Cohen’s resignation on Tuesday, which takes effect March 21, according to a news release. MacKenzie Garvin, the office’s current chief of staff, will become the acting director of the mayoral office.