Politics

Operations have been suspended and a site supervisor arrested at the Belair-Edison outpost of the Baltimore anti-violence group Safe Streets in the wake of an FBI raid on the location last week, a spokesperson for the nonprofit that manages the site said Monday.

Officials at school districts across Maryland are in the process of raising teacher salaries and kickstarting a new pay structure, changes required by the state’s landmark education reform plan. But some teachers’ unions have said there is unclear guidance from state education officials on the specifics of the payment structure, called a career ladder, and whether districts can offer their current pay structure as one of multiple ways to earn a raise.

County leaders are being warned to be reasonable when considering using zoning to restrict cannabis businesses. The warning comes as the Maryland Cannabis Administration is about to open the application window for a social equity round of licenses that will award more than six dozen new dispensary licenses. Some county officials are frustrated by what they see as a vagary in the state law or a usurpation of local control of land use, the Maryland Association of Counties called for a measured approach when it comes to zoning.

Maryland high school students can now participate in a “service year” where they will be placed in jobs throughout the state to help jump-start their careers while giving back to the community. Gov. Wes Moore says the program is the first of its kind in the nation. Moore launched the service year option program for high school graduates at a kickoff event at the University of Maryland, College Park, on Friday.

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball said Friday that he is giving “serious consideration” to running for the U.S. House seat being vacated by Democratic incumbent John Sarbanes at the end of next year. Ball, a Democrat, was elected county executive in 2018 and reelected in 2022. “With the retirement of my dear friend Congressman John Sarbanes, many in our community and across our state have encouraged me to run for Congress,” Ball, 48, said in a statement on social media.

Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said he’s bowing out from planned visits to Harvard University over concerns of antisemitism on campus. Hogan, a Republican, cited the “dangerous anti-Semitism that has taken root” at Harvard, “especially by more than 30 Harvard student organizations attempting to justify and celebrate Hamas’ terrorism against innocent Israeli and American civilians.”

Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided a Baltimore Safe Streets office in Belair-Edison on Thursday, according to officials overseeing the program. The officials, some of whom were not authorized to speak about the raid, said agents visited the site on Belair Road early Thursday morning. Two sources said the investigation is believed to be isolated to the Belair-Edison site, not a larger probe of the Safe Streets program.