Friction continued Thursday between an elected Baltimore leader and the city school system over the length of weekly youth programming this summer amid plans to revive a youth curfew. City Councilman Zeke Cohen announced Thursday morning that he had “reached a compromise” with Baltimore City Public Schools to create “Field Trip Fridays” for young people enrolled in summer programming affiliated with the city school system.
Maryland has begun an unprecedented effort to renew Medicaid coverage for nearly 1.8 million adults and children for the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. States were required to provide uninterrupted coverage for those enrolled in Medicaid, the public health insurance program for low-income people, throughout the pandemic in exchange for increased federal funding. But the public health emergency is set to end on May 11.
Maryland’s State Board of Elections kicked off the search Thursday for the state’s first new elections administrator in over 25 years. A job listing for the position, approved by the board, will be posted Friday and start a two-week application period. Board members expect to conduct interviews before the end of the month and announce their selection during a June 5 special meeting.
Freshman Del. Joe Vogel (D-Dist. 17) has filed to run for Maryland congressional District 6, just hours after its current representative, Democrat David Trone, announced he would be running for U.S. Senate in a bid to succeed Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.). Vogel, who is among the first members of Gen-Z elected to the State House, has filed the Vogel for Congress campaign with the Federal Election Commission.
A significant amount of the Prince George’s County budget is already accounted for by education and public safety; other initiatives and proposals have to battle it out for the rest. What’s considered the rest just got smaller. “Prince George’s County has less revenue than many communities around the region,” County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said when unveiling her budget in March. “This has been very difficult for us.”
With a $223 million property tax hike looming, the hunt is on inside the council building to save money and reduce the tax increase. And a council staff analyst has recommended saving more than a third of that amount in one fell swoop. The catch is that it comes out of the county executive’s recommended budget for MCPS.
Maryland moved closer to offering legal cannabis for adults and enshrining reproductive health care rights into the state constitution, as Gov. Wes Moore signed dozens of bills into law on Wednesday. Lawmakers, lobbyists and advocates packed State House hallways waiting for their turn to witness the governor autograph some of the 2023 General Assembly’s most progressive legislation and pose for pictures while he was signing.
When he testified in favor of the bill that would require American Sign Language interpreters to be licensed in Maryland, Kelby Brick, director of the Governor’s Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, told lawmakers about an incident that made global headlines. At the funeral for former South African President Nelson Mandela in 2013, a sign language interpreter hired for the event was accused of being a fake, signing nonsense throughout the ceremony seen by millions around the world.
Baltimore County landlords who rent out seven or more units will now be required to register with the county as part of an ongoing legislative effort to overhaul housing infrastructure and codify regulations. The bill outlining this, introduced on behalf of County Executive Johnny Olszewski Jr., was passed Monday evening, unanimously, by the Baltimore County Council.
U.S. Rep. David Trone, who represents Frederick County and Western Maryland, will become the third Democrat to announce his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retirement of Ben Cardin after next year. Trone, 67, the wealthy co-founder of the Total Wine & More retailer who is in his third term in Congress, plans to declare for the race on Thursday with a news release and video.
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