November 25, 2013
Drivers could be automatically registered to vote when they apply for their license, according to a proposal under consideration by a voting rights task force in Montgomery County.
Current federal law requires Motor Vehicle Administration employees to ask customers if they would like to register to vote or update their voter registration information during their driver's license or photo identification card applications. [...more]
November 24, 2013
The chairman of one of Maryland's largest health insurance brokerage firms predicted small businesses would begin to feel the real effects of Obamacare when they get their renewal notices Jan. 1, which will bring higher rates and fewer benefits.
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No one with a sense of history should be surprised by Baltimore County Council's unanimous rejection of a $13.7 million housing development for low-income families in Rosedale on the county's eastside.
The county has a long record for strongly opposing housing assistance for families with low or moderate incomes. Indeed, any politician who ignores the hyper-sensitivity of county voters to keeping the jurisdiction safe for "folks like us" risks defeat. [...more]
November 21, 2013
I feel compelled to add my own little stream of memory to the flood of recollections surrounding the 50th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination Friday.
Surely many under 55 must marvel at the way their elders hold onto this event and this flawed man. [...more]
November 20, 2013
State Senate leaders told a business group Wednesday that they expected to see some sort of small business tax relief in the coming legislative session, possibly coupled with an increase in the minimum wage. [...more]
The results of the Baltimore Sun's Fifth Annual Mobbies awards were announced Tuesday night. MarylandReporter.com won as the Best Politics Blog and we came in fourth as the Best News Blog. [...more]
November 19, 2013
Local election officials are already expressing uncertainty about what could go wrong when the state switches from an electronic voting system to using paper ballots in the next two years. By the 2016 presidential elections the state will replace touch-screen machines and make a fundamental shift to the way voters cast ballots. [...more]
Maryland needs to continue to invest more in public transportation as it sees a boost in funding from the rising state gas tax, transportation experts said Monday at annual transportation summit of the Greater Baltimore Committee. [...more]
November 18, 2013
How old is Helen Delich Bentley, the crotchety ex-congresswoman who could swear like the longshoremen she covered for years at the Port of Baltimore now named in her honor?
Turns out she'll be 90 on Thanksgiving. Sunday, she was feted with a celebration and roast that brought out a distinguished crowd of aging congressional leaders, former governors and senators, has-beens and wannabes along with hundreds of old friends to the Museum of Industry on the Inner Harbor waterfront. [...more]
The bidding race is on. Democratic candidates for governor are seeking to one-up each other on new programs and tax cuts.
All of them ignore the fact Maryland's finances are unsteady and could continue that way. The next governor is likely to face a structural deficit exceeding a half-billion dollars. [...more]
