Politics

Maryland’s transportation officials are considering adding more speed cameras to roadway work zones and increasing speeding fines in those areas, among other potential changes, Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller said Thursday. There are an average of three work zone crashes in Maryland every day, threatening the safety of roughly 1,000 construction workers spread across more than 300 sites, Miller said.

After years of backlash against former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s Beltway widening plan, in August the Moore administration introduced a modified proposal to address congestion. The new plan nixes the controversial public-private partnership, which would allow a private company to profit from tolls decades into the future. Nonetheless, it still entails road-widening, which critics point out induces more traffic demand.

Pay raises for city officials and nuisance sweeps of area streets were highlighted Tuesday during mayor and City Council meetings. Cumberland Code Compliance Manager Kevin Thacker, appointed zoning administrator last month, at a work session provided an update of community development projects and programs. The city sold roughly a dozen properties, attained by donation or delinquent tax situation, for rehabilitation in the past year and demolished five others.

Some potential cannabis businesses are criticizing the tight turnaround to obtain new licenses to grow, process or distribute marijuana, after the Maryland Cannabis Administration announced applications will open on Nov. 13, with distribution set to start just six weeks later on Jan. 1. The bill that legalized cannabis for individuals 21 and older in Maryland that took effect July 1 created a timeline for the recreational industry, including a two-round licensing process for new cannabis businesses that will initially prioritize applicants who qualify for social equity, an initiative aimed to remediate harm from the criminalization of cannabis.

Gov. Wes Moore (D) apologized Wednesday to a Baltimore man who was wrongfully imprisoned on an erroneous murder conviction after the man was awarded more than $300,000 in compensation by the Board of Public Works. “I am deeply sorry for the fact that our justice system failed you not once, but our justice system failed you twice,” Moore said to Demetrius Smith.

Baltimore’s spending board deferred decisions on contracts for two top public safety officials Wednesday, one day before both were due to be considered for confirmation by the City Council. A $285,000 annual salary agreement with acting Police Commissioner Richard Worley and a $218,000 agreement with acting Fire Chief James Wallace were both expected to be approved by the mayor-controlled Board of Estimates.

After Maryland Gov. Wes Moore cautioned state and local officials last month about impending budget woes due to a slowing economy, many are wondering what programs will be prioritized and how the newly elected Democratic governor will keep major promises he made to the state. The upcoming “season of discipline,” as the governor called it during his August speech at the Maryland Association of Counties summer conference, raises questions for lawmakers and other Marylanders: How will the next budget negotiations look?