Friday, March 29, 2024 | Baltimore, MD
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Politics

Opioid deaths spur push for kids to carry naloxone in Maryland

Jackson Taylor remembers when a peer passed out from an overdose across from his high school. He knows friends who have struggled with addiction. One has been in and out of rehab. Those experiences help explain why the Rockville High School senior now trains his peers on how to administer naloxone, a lifesaving medication that reverses opioid overdoses. They’re why he carries naloxone at school and why he wants all districts to let their students do the same.

Alsobrooks proposes freezing 800 county positions in tough budget year

Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D) wants to freeze more than 800 county positions, cut agency budgets and draw down rainy-day funds to fix a projected $171 million budget shortfall for the 2025 fiscal year. The county’s hands are tied, she said. Revenue fell short of projections — again. And with each passing year, state mandates for education spending have mounted, prompting Alsobrooks to ask the legislature for more flexibility on school spending this session even as she to seeks to leverage her record on education in appeals to voters.

Some highlights from a busy day in Annapolis

The state Senate and the House of Delegates held double floor sessions and several committee meetings Friday and churned through scores of bills. It was all part of the rush before Monday’s “crossover day” — the deadline for bill to pass out of one chamber of the legislature to guarantee consideration in the other chamber.

Maryland politicos weigh in on Israeli-Hamas war

Maryland politicians weighed in on the Israeli-Hamas war over the weekend, appearing on major talk shows as concerns seem to be growing about a humanitarian crisis facing Palestinians. U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen spoke in support of a mutual ceasefire between Hamas and Israel and a return of all Israeli hostages on “Face the Nation” Sunday morning — doubling down on a message he has been pushing for months.

Maryland Senate approves $63B budget legislation for next fiscal year

Despite recent fiscal challenges, Gov. Wes Moore’s $63 billion budget plan remains largely intact under legislation approved unanimously Thursday in the Maryland Senate. The measure makes reserves available if needed to cover a miscalculation in Medicaid costs that was discovered after the governor submitted his budget to the General Assembly in January. The legislation now goes to the Maryland House, where majority Democrats haven’t been shy in voicing support to raise significant revenues this year to help address deficits in future years, pay for a major K-12 education funding overhaul and fund ambitious plans to fight climate change.

 

Read More: AP News
Meet the women who help power Maryland’s political campaigns

Baltimore’s most powerful political offices are exclusively held by men, but women fueled the campaigns that got them there. A handful of women are the most sought-after — and effective — campaign fundraisers for races in Baltimore and across Maryland. That several Maryland women represent most mainstream Democratic city and state officials is unusual, said Martha McKenna. The communications consultant advises federal and local campaigns, including Sheila Dixon’s current mayoral bid.

Baltimore mayor calls on House to restore highway funding cuts by Senate

About 200 miles of Baltimore city roads need to be repaved, but funding cuts at the state level may put the projects in jeopardy. Senate lawmakers approved Senate Bill 362, which includes potential long-term cuts in transit funding that are intended to address the state’s $3.3 billion budget shortfall. The bill heads to the House for its approval. Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott is calling on the House to restore the cuts to the city’s highway user revenue.

Read More: WBALTV
Advocates ask Moore to veto changes to Maryland juvenile justice system

Juvenile justice legislation moving through the General Assembly is facing opposition from advocacy groups that say the proposed changes would bring a new wave of mass incarceration and criminalize Black children. The proposals still must go through a conference committee to hash out differences between the Senate and House bills, both of which have passed their respective chambers.

State bill would remove local zoning limitations on renewable energy sources

A Maryland House committee voted Wednesday in favor of a bill that would allow certain renewable energy sources to be built and used on any type of land. Several representatives of Frederick County, as well as county officials, said they are concerned that the bill oversteps counties’ zoning authority and would be expensive for jurisdictions. If passed, House Bill 1407 would prevent all jurisdictions from adopting zoning laws or other regulations that limit or ban the construction and operation of Tier 1 renewable sources under Maryland’s Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS).

Howard County’s library drama: Where to put it

Nearly a year after Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced plans for a new “iconic lakefront library” in Columbia, the project is essentially back to the drawing board. Ball’s enthusiasm for the proposed $144 million state-of-the-art library wasn’t shared by all last year, with some complaining about a lack of transparency in developing plans for a tiered, glass-enclosed structure along Little Patuxent Parkway and overlooking Lake Kittamaqundi.

 

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