The Board of Public Works approved $245 million in two-year contracts with 71 different providers of residential child care services for the Department of Human Resources on Wednesday. The contracts cost the state about $126 million less than in 2008, because fewer children need those services.
Ted Dallas, interim secretary of the Department of Human Resources, said that before the department implemented a new approach to foster services in 2007, they needed about 2,200 beds for young people in residential care. The contracts approved on Wednesday provide 1,376 beds in residential care, and Dallas said the amount of young people needing that kind of care is continuing to drop.
Day: March 24, 2011
State Roundup, March 24, 2011
House of Delegates gives initial approval to budget plan; teachers union seeks compromise on pension changes; O’Malley goes to City Dock to continue to push for wind program; wine shipments pass — but only for wineries; House to vote on bill that would up penalties for negligent driving that ends in death; and ethics bill for Prince George’s comes before the House.
House gives tentative OK to $34 billion budget, rejecting GOP cuts
The full House of Delegates gave preliminary approval Wednesday night to an overall state budget of $34 billion for fiscal 2012, 2.8% higher than this year. After nearly 4½ hours of debate, the budget as passed by the House Appropriations Committee emerged unscathed. The House rejected a series of 14 amendments to cut the budget with various components of the Republican budget proposal or to add pieces of failed bills.
Health advocates embrace new alcohol sales tax being fast tracked in Senate
Advocates who have been pushing for a dime-a-drink alcohol tax hike for more than a year are now embracing a newly introduced 3% sales tax on beer, wine and spirits that would raise less than half of what they were seeking, and would not be dedicated to health and disability services as the advocates had hoped.
Teachers union proposes pension changes
The state teachers union has proposed revised pension changes as an alternative to the retirement shifts proposed by the House Appropriations Committee in the budget plan that the House of Delegates tentatively approved Wednesday night. The MSEA plan combines higher employee contributions and lower cost-of-living adjustments.
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