Politics

The leader of the Maryland Senate said Republican appointees to the State Board of Elections will have to answer questions about involvement in the failed Jan. 6 insurrection following the recent arrest of a board member. President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) said Tuesday the process by which the Senate reviews and confirms appointments will not change in the near term. The questions about personal involvement in Jan. 6 and a nominee’s personal beliefs about elections will be litmus tests, he said.

Mayor Brandon Scott kept his cards close to the vest for months ahead of a much-anticipated vote on an ambitious new housing proposal, keeping quiet on whether he’d sign the bill package into law. While affordable-housing advocates paraded and picketed City Hall to drum up support, top officials in the Scott administration were raising red flags about the proposal’s scope. Baltimore could face a $1.8 billion budget shortfall over the next decade, and officials in the Department of Finance repeatedly warned that the city budget could hardly sustain another tax credit or risk stunting new development.

The Orioles pledged their support Wednesday for a Baltimore City Council bill that would ban the use of tobacco and nicotine products at stadiums, including Camden Yards, within the city limits. The Major League Baseball organization issued a statement noting that it will also ban the use of tobacco products at both of its Florida training complexes: Ed Smith Stadium Complex, which hosts spring training, and the Buck O’Neil Complex at Twin Lakes Park.

In what is shaping up to be a financially difficult year for the Maryland General Assembly, community health and hospital advocates hope state lawmakers consider bills that would improve access to care for low-income Marylanders, help reduce high-cost drug prices and reform prior authorization practices. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has labeled the next few months “a season of discipline” as the state faces a projected $761 million budget deficit that is expected to grow in the coming years.

Multiple municipalities and residential properties in Frederick County would get more than $6.4 million in loan funding for water improvement projects — including treating water system contamination and stream remediation — under Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed fiscal year 2025 capital budget. The towns of Myersville and Thurmont would receive $781,000 and $2.2 million, respectively, to treat the presence of PFAS — known as “forever chemicals” — in water facilities.

According to a more than one-hour presentation by the Council of State Governments’ Justice Center, violent crime in Maryland decreased by 16% between 2012 and 2022, compared to the national average decrease of 2%. During that 10-year span, aggravated assault decreased by 11% and robbery by 34%. Nationally aggravated assault increased by 10% and robbery decreased by 42%, on average.

Thiru Vignarajah is joining the race for mayor, a month after taking initial steps to join a Democratic primary that includes Mayor Brandon Scott and former Mayor Sheila Dixon. The former deputy attorney general for Maryland and now four-time candidate for office in Baltimore said he was pushed to enter the race after two major events last week: the latest batch of campaign finance reports from his rivals, which he was less than impressed by, and the purchase of the Baltimore Sun by David Smith, the executive chairman of Sinclair Inc. The Hunt Valley-based company owns and operates more than 190 television stations, including flagship WBFF Fox45.

A $63 billion budget proposed by Gov. Wes Moore (D) resolves short-term budget concerns but does little to address billions of dollars in projected budget shortfalls in coming years, legislative analysts said Monday. The outlook, which House Appropriations Committee Chair Ben Barnes (D-Prince George’s and Anne Arundel) called “frightening,” was part of an analysis delivered to House and Senate budget committees Monday. Billions of dollars in ballooning projected deficits over the next three years fed questions about possible tax increases.

The battle over speed cameras in Baltimore County continued Wednesday. A proposed bill would allow the expansion of speed cameras. House Bill 58 would allow the installation of cameras in certain neighborhoods. Police would decide where to put them, followed by approval from the Baltimore County Council. “They are a needed thing because a lot of times, I have seen drivers just bypass even the school guards sitting outside trying to keep the children safe,” resident Eddie Vinson said.