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.
Month: March 2011
BWI taxi contract extended only 90 days, while drivers ask for living wage
About 30 airport taxi drivers filled the seats at the Board of Public Works Wednesday to call attention to procurement problems at Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport. The drivers inspired the board to unanimously cut the contract extension for the company they drive for, BWI Taxi Management Inc., from one year to 90 days.
Novelty lighter ban enflames one senator
Debate lit up the Senate Wednesday over an attempt to ban lighters shaped as cartoon characters or other objects that might appeal to youngsters. Sen. Allan Kittleman, Howard-Carroll, wound up debating two of his Republican colleagues in his usual attempt to keep the state from over-regulating the lives of its citizens and businesses.
Blog Update: That $75k was not for bottled water, it was for hybrid trucks
In a blog post this morning about state purchases of bottled water, we listed $75,000 that went to Deer Park from the Maryland Energy Adminstration.
The figure came from the Maryland Funding Accountability & Transparency website. It turns out the money was not for water, but for hybrid trucks, according to Ian Hines with the MEA.
State Roundup, March 23, 2011
Grim budget predictions in House; facing skeptics, O’Malley’s wind proposal put on hold for study; campus merger could mean boon for state; O’Malley pulls prescription drug contract; medical marijuana bill makes a comeback in a new form; advocates hope to get the state to stop buying bottled water; Senate passes bill to regulate for-profit colleges; retailers won’t be able to ship wine, wineries will; House kills amendments to push fracking forward, state to study instead; and county budgets hit the headlines.
Senators fight over group homes for juveniles
Another fight over state-funded juvenile group homes ignited on the Senate floor Tuesday, with a bill to give private operators more time to meet the requirement that their workers be certified to take care of troubled youth.
The operators had been given five years to have their staff certified by 2015, but they are seeking another year to meet the requirement. Declining state reimbursement, combined with this unfunded mandate, could put some of them out of business, some said.
Blog: Maryland should kick the bottled water habit, activists say
As Gov. Martin O’Malley testifies at hearings in Annapolis, he often has his trusty three-ring binder in one hand and a plastic bottle of water in the other.
On Tuesday, World Water Day, a small group of environmental activists urged the governor “to kick the bottle out of the State House,” and use the money to invest in the state’s aging water infrastructure.
Blog: Five strikes, and you’re out: Beitzel fails on fracking
Del. Wendell Beitzel, R-Garrett County, made his support for drilling Marcellus shale to produce natural gas in his corner of the state quite clear on Tuesday morning.
Beitzel offered five unsuccessful amendments to a bill that would require a comprehensive study on the impact and risks of drilling the shale before permits could be issued. The Department of the Environment and the Department of Natural Resources would publish the study, including conclusions and recommendations for legislative changes, by August 2013.
State Roundup, March 22, 2011
State seeks to regulate for-profit colleges; Miller proposes merging UM’s College Park, Baltimore campuses; union leaders back House changes to retiree pension plans over O’Malley proposal; cutting BWI fire staff proposed; lawmakers to ponder several anti-fish poaching bills; more on the environment front: wind power rally in Annapolis, electric car incentives and bottled water ban; and 3% hike in alcohol tax also proposed.
State Roundup, Monday, March 21, 2011
Lots of coverage on the House Appropriations Committee’s changes to O’Malley’s budget proposal: some cuts rolled back, retirees prescription plan lowered, some vehicle fees hiked; Pipken suggests Maryland’s DC burbs pay for Purple Line; extending millionaire’s tax proposed; MVA to computerize motor-voter registration; cameras proposed for school buses — to catch passing drivers; state may curb job applicant credit checks; opinions abound — wind farms, local courtesy and gay marriage; and why road tolls will hike over the next few years;
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