Around Maryland

For three years, Newtowne 20 resident Mae Bridgers kept asking when they were going to do something. By “they,” Bridgers meant developers, the Housing Authority of the City of Annapolis, the city itself, or the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. Anyone, really, who could move forward the timeline to replace the ugly, aging brick buildings where she and 78 other families lived in a federally-owned housing development off Forest Drive.

The Frederick County Board of Education on Wednesday gave final approval to its $822 million budget for fiscal year 2023. The spending plan represents an increase of $57 million over fiscal year 2022, or about 7.5%. The board’s unanimous vote caps off a months-long budget process that, for the third year in a row, was made more complicated by coronavirus-related funding considerations.

Baltimore’s police commissioner, Michael Harrison, is asking for help from city residents after a weekend in the city that saw several violent incidents. According to police, from Friday, June 17 through Sunday June 19, Baltimore City experienced 11 shooting incidents involving six homicides and 5 non-fatal shootings. There were also 28 confirmed robberies.

After months of fraught debate on how to best create a police accountability board in Anne Arundel County, eight board members were approved Monday by the County Council. The county residents who were nominated were chosen by County Executive Steuart Pittman out of 89 applicants. The board will be responsible for logging and reviewing complaints about police misconduct.

Earlier this month, as the Carroll County Board of Education adopted an alternative framework for its high school human sexuality curriculum, members of the school system’s Family Life Advisory Committee lamented a loss of local control over what students should and should not be learning in county classrooms. The Code of Maryland Regulations directs local school boards to provide “appropriate alternative learning activities” in health education for students whose parents wish to opt them out of the Maryland Comprehensive Health Education Framework section on family life and human sexuality.

Fares for public transit in Maryland will increase Sunday, June 26, the Maryland Transit Authority reminds travelers. Single-trip fares will increase by 10 cents, with fares for Local Bus, Light Rail Link and Metro Subway Link going from $1.90 to $2.00, and Mobility Link fares going from $2.10 to $2.20. Monthly fare passes will increase from $74 to $77. The calculation is based on the increase in the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers. The price of public transportation increases every two years as required by the Transportation Infrastructure Investment Act of 2013.