Politics

As avian flu cases among dairy cows are reported in several states, Maryland is taking action to prevent it from spreading into the state. The Maryland Department of Agriculture has issued an order restricting the movement of dairy cows from affected states.“The concern about movement of cattle is that a lot of the outbre aks in multiple states have been linked to one particular farm in Texas, which implies that the movement of cattle is somehow spreading this virus to other states as well,” Dr. Andrew Pekosz, a virus expert who studies viruses such as influenza at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said.

State Attorney General Anthony Brown has endorsed U.S. Senate candidate and current U.S. Rep. David Trone and appears in a new campaign ad for the fellow Democrat. “I’ve been in the trenches with him sticking up for fairness and standing up for everyday people,” says Brown, the former lieutenant governor, in the television ad. The Trone campaign said the ad began broadcasting statewide on Wednesday.

A legislative ethics panel has called on an Anne Arundel County lawmaker to apologize to the public, the speaker of the House and other legislative leaders for her involvement in funding requests for a religious organization to which she belongs. The panel further recommended that Del. Shaneka Henson (D-Anne Arundel) not be reassigned to the House Appropriations Committee after what it called an “ongoing practice” to hide her personal and professional relationship with an organization seeking more than $1 million in state bond money.

Maryland lawmakers passed a handful of gun bills this year, permitting civil lawsuits against the gun industry and banning devices that turn handguns into machine guns. Top Democrats representing some of the state’s most liberal districts championed the bills. They fought for measures they say are needed to bridge legal gaps, fund trauma centers aiding gunshot victims and improve public safety by preventing gun violence.

Although campaign finance reports showing federal candidates’ fundraising and spending for the first three months of 2024 aren’t due to be released until next Monday, some Maryland contenders are already teasing their numbers as a sign of their level of support. Harry Dunn, the former U.S. Capitol Police officer who is making his first political run in the 3rd congressional district, is going to report raising more than $3.75 million since becoming a candidate in early January, his campaign told Maryland Matters.

With barely a month to go until election day, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott retains a sizable cash advantage over his rivals, including former Mayor Sheila Dixon, according to campaign finance filings submitted Tuesday, reporting nearly double the balance of his leading challenger. Dixon out-raised Scott since the last filing deadline in January, bringing in almost $273,000 compared to Scott’s $231,000 over that stretch.

Maryland lawmakers passed legislation creating a “Purple Alert” that would create large-scale alerts when adults with intellectual disabilities go missing. Jimmy Hall, the father of a man with intellectual disabilities who recently went missing, says now, families like his “will have a voice.” Hall’s 31-year-old son Rashawn Williams, who has Down syndrome, was missing for six days before he was found in a locked room at the Glenmont Metro station in October of last year.

Under a bill he signed Tuesday, Gov. Wes Moore will have access to up to $275 million in state reserves to temporarily buoy businesses and individuals whose work relies on regular cargo shipping in and out of the Port of Baltimore’s main channel. The governor isn’t expected to hit the $275 million cap, and the legislature has limited to $25 million the amount that he can withdraw at a time from the state’s rainy day funds.