BLUE LAWMAKERS FROM MD. BEGIN NEW YEAR IN RED CONGRESS, SEEKING ‘COMMON GROUND’ DESPITE CHALLENGES: Johnny Olszewski Jr. planned to bring his young daughter to the U.S. House of Representatives for his swearing-in on Friday. “My daughter gets to be on the floor because she’s under 12. She is nine going on 16,” he said. Jeff Barker/The Baltimore Sun.
FIERCE CAMPAIGN TO FILL ANNAPOLIS AREA SENATE SEAT: The competition for an open state Senate seat in the Annapolis area may rest on the top two contenders’ records on reproductive health and LGBTQIA+ rights. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
DEMOCRATS THINK RASKIN IS A LEADER FOR ‘TRUMP ERA’ POLITICS: When a new Congress gavels in Friday, Jamie Raskin will recast himself in the role that has defined his Capitol Hill tenure: resisting Donald Trump. Sapna Bansil/The Baltimore Banner.
HOUSING ADVOCATES AIM TO BUILD ON THIS YEAR’S WINS TO PUSH ‘JUST CAUSE’, OTHER EFFORTS: State housing officials, lawmakers and advocates say they hope to build off of legislative successes from last session to move bills across the finish line in the 2025 General Assembly that didn’t make it last year. Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters.
ADVOCATES HOPEFUL TO EXPAND MD’S DRUG AFFORDABILITY JURISDICTION: Lawmakers and health advocates are hoping to expand the jurisdiction of Maryland’s Prescription Drug Affordability Board this year to allow the organization to negotiate pharmaceutical prices for private insurance plans in the state. WYPR-FM.
BATTLE OF THE BUDGET TO DOMINATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SESSION, STARTING WEDNESDAY: A nearly $3 billion deficit is expected to ignite the toughest debates over funding priorities in years — with all kinds of stakeholders, from educators pleading for funding to businesses wary of higher taxes, gearing up for a fight. Sam Janesch/The Baltimore Sun.
ANOTHER RECORD DROP IN BALT. HOMICIDES: Murders in Baltimore were down 23% in 2024 with 201, the lowest figure in eight years, but still too many, says the mayor. Alex Mann/Baltimore Sun
MD PROPERTY VALUES ROSE 20%, HIGHER TAX BILLS LIKELY: Property values in Maryland have jumped on average by double digits, according to state tax officials, a sign of the market’s strong pulse in a competitive housing economy, but a sure blow to homeowners facing higher property tax bills this year. Hallie Miller/Baltimore Banner.
APPLICANTS SOUGHT FOR HO. CO. INSPECTOR GENERAL ADVISORY BOARD: Howard County Executive Calvin Ball is seeking applicants for the county’s new Inspector General Advisory Board, which will select the county’s first-ever inspector general to lead the agency. Kiersten Hacker/The Baltimore Sun.
DEMOCRATS OBJECT TO TRUMP’S EXPECTED PARDONS OF JAN. 6 DEFENDANTS: Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin on Thursday urged Americans to demand President-elect Donald Trump justify each Jan. 6 defendant pardon if he issues them on his “first day” in office, as promised. Ashley Murray/Maryland Matters.
CONSTELLATION AWARDED $1 BILLION IN GOV’T POWER CONTRACTS: Baltimore-based Constellation, the nation’s largest operator of nuclear power plants, has been awarded more than $1 billion in federal contracts to supply power to government agencies and lead conservation measures. Lorraine Mirabella/The Baltimore Sun.
SHIMKIN STEPS DOWN AS DIRECTOR OF EPA’S CHESAPEAKE BAY PROGRAM OFFICE: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program Office, which coordinates regional efforts to restore the nation’s largest estuary, will be under new leadership in 2025 as it crafts another cleanup plan for the Bay. Karl Blankenship/Bay Journal.
MO CO LEGISLATORS, ABORTION ACCESS ADVOCATES, PREPARE FOR TRUMP: The day after Donald Trump was elected president in November, patients looking for help swamped local clinics operated by Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C., including one in Gaithersburg, according to Dr. Divya Chenoy, the nonprofit’s director of primary care. Ginny Bixby/MoCo 360.
B’MORE ICE UNIT ARRESTS 8 NON-CITIZENS IN ‘TARGETED OPERATION’: A Baltimore unit of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested eight noncitizens last month who committed offenses in the U.S., it announced in a release on Thursday. Ray Lewis/Fox 45 News.
NEW RAILCARS IN B’MORE: In 2025, the first of 78 new railcars will go into service as the Maryland Transit Administration begins replacing the original fleet. It’s a nearly $557 million investment, mostly funded by the federal government. Daniel Zawodny/The Baltimore Banner.
COMMENTARY: GOV. WES MOORE NEEDS TO BE AT HIS BEST: “How he addresses our fiscal challenges will say much about who he is as a leader. If he blames others, engages in partisan politics, prioritizes loyalty over honesty or allows his involvement in national politics to distract from the hard work at home, Marylanders will see one version of Wes Moore. I hope to see the other Wes Moore, the one who accomplishes big things in hard times and inspires” Colin Pascal/Baltimore Sun
COMMENTARY: REMEMBERING A GREAT TALK SHOW HOST: WBAL’s Ron Smith is sorely missed on the airwaves. “There was no topic on which Ron was not conversant, and he was never a dilettante: He seemed to know all topics in depth. June Smith and Rick Vatz/Baltimore Sun
