State Roundup, October 28, 2009

The state’s public defender oversight board came under fire yesterday in a Senate hearing on the August firing of the agency’s director, Nancy Forster. The Sun reports that Judicial Proceedings Committee Chairman Brian Frosh wants legislation to expand the board from three members to nine. Brendan Kearney’s piece in The Daily Record gives a good description of the scene.

The Washington Examiner follows the Sun and Post giving more details on Gov. Martin O’Malley plans to push for the state to require mediation before a bank can foreclose on a home.

Maryland is among the top states in protecting its shoreline from rising sea levels associated with climate change, according to a federal study analyzed by The Sun’s Tim Wheeler.

Buddy Roogow, who has run the Maryland Lottery for 13 years, is leaving to head Washington, D.C’s lottery at the end of November, WBAL Radio reports. The Sun’s State House team points out that he is leaving at a time when the lottery is playing a big part in the rollout of slots in the state.

Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold and Baltimore City Deputy Mayor Andy Frank both said yesterday that they think slots are going to move forward in their respective jurisdictions, according to the Post’s Maryland blog.

The National Transportation Safety Board is blaming pilot error in the fatal crash of a state Medevac helicopter last year. The board also pointed to State Police risk management and air traffic controllers as having a part in the crash.

Liam Farrell at The Capital writes that more than 100 people showed up to a Severna Park event to protest state budget cuts affecting services for developmentally disabled people.

The Daily Record picked up our story on the differing effects of combined corporate tax reporting among segments of the business community. Our content is available free for reuse.

State Sen. Andy Harris, who lost to Rep. Frank Kratovil last year and is likely to challenge him again, is getting closer to having the blessing of the National Republican Campaign Committee, Paul West writes on The Sun’s political blog.

Baltimore County Republican Central Committee Chairman Chris Cavey is dropping out of contention for the state chairmanship, Bryan Sears with Patuxent reports on his Strange Bedfellows blog. This leaves Audrey Scott and Daniel “The Wig Man” Vovak as contenders.

Adam Pagnucco at Maryland Politics Watch has more on legislative pay, this time highlighting three Republican lawmakers, who he thinks can afford to give back some cash.

About The Author

Len Lazarick

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Len Lazarick was the founding editor and publisher of MarylandReporter.com and is currently the president of its nonprofit corporation and chairman of its board He was formerly the State House bureau chief of the daily Baltimore Examiner from its start in April 2006 to its demise in February 2009. He was a copy editor on the national desk of the Washington Post for eight years before that, and has spent decades covering Maryland politics and government.

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