BIKING GROUPS UNITE TO PUT DEDICATED LANES ON NEW BAY BRIDGE: Dozens of Anne Arundel County biking groups are coming together in an effort to put bike and pedestrian lanes into the design plans for the new Chesapeake Bay Bridge. The new bridge will replace the existing one with two new structures, likely with eight to 10 lanes for cars – as opposed to the existing five. The Maryland Transportation Authority has proposed including bike and pedestrian lanes, and 56 national, state and local biking groups released a petition Wednesday to push for these lanes to be included in the bridge’s design. Tori Newby/The Baltimore Sun.
MARYLAND STANDS TO GAIN $90M FROM PURDUE PHARMA: A prescription opioid manufacturer and the family running it have preliminarily agreed to pay out billions to states to settle litigation involving their alleged contribution to the opioid crisis — with Maryland in line to get $90 million of that amount. The tentative agreement with Purdue Pharma was announced Monday by attorneys general representing 55 states and territories, imcluding Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
MARYLAND LAWMAKERS QUESTION WHY RESEARCH AT DETRICK REMAINS HALTED: Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Health and Human Services Department ordered a pause on all research activities at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases research facility at Fort Detrick in Frederick in late April. Nearly two months later, Maryland lawmakers are still looking for answers. Ben Mause/The Baltimore Sun.
MOORE ADMIN, HUMAN SERVICES SECTY SEEK TO PUT HIS DUI CHARGE BEHIND: Moore administration officials were trying to put DUI charges against Human Services Secretary Rafael López in the past, with López and the governor both saying the secretary has taken “full responsibility” for his actions. They were responding to reports that López was charged in Washington, D.C., with driving under the influence and operating a vehicle while impaired on the evening of Jan. 18. Staff/Maryland Matters.
AARP WARNS OLDER MARYLANDERS OF PERVASIVE SCAMS: Karen Morgan, who serves on the AARP Maryland Executive Council, said the state ranked fifth in the nation last year in terms of all fraud and eighth in identity fraud. Morgan said there’s one main reason why scammers target Maryland. “We have a large percentage of people that get pensions. We have a large percentage of federal, state and local government employees concentrated in this area and scammers target those funds,” she said. “Scammers use your emotions as a weapon. That’s why they can be successful.” William Ford/Maryland Matters.
TARA JACKSON CHOSEN AS PRINCE GEORGE’S ACTING STATE’S ATTORNEY: Prince George’s County Circuit Court judges selected Tara H. Jackson (D) on Monday evening to be acting state’s attorney for Prince George’s County, according to two people familiar with the decision who were not authorized to speak publicly. Jasmine Hilton and Lateshia Beachum/The Washington Post.
- Jackson had been serving as the county’s chief administrative officer when then-County Executive Angela Alsobrooks was elected last fall to an open seat in the U.S. Senate. The county charter says that in the event of a vacancy in the executive’s office, the job is to be filled on an interim basis by the chief administrative officer, the No. 2 official in the county. Jackson immediately said she was not interested in running for the position permanently. Danielle Brown and William Ford/Maryland Matters.
LIBRARY BRANCHES BENEFIT FROM STATE GRANTS: A state-of-the-art Park Heights branch library moved one step nearer completion recently, with the approval of a $249,000 grant from the state Board of Public Works aimed at opening the new institution in the Northwest Baltimore neighborhood that has been without library service for nearly a quarter of a century. Mary Carole McCauley/The Baltimore Sun.
BUYING A HOME IN HOWARD IS MORE DIFFICULT THAN EVER: The schools, the parks, the location: Howard County — the birthplace of Columbia, a community designed to foster integration — has spent decades building up a reputation as a distinctly Maryland treasure, one where families have lined up to live. But now it’s far and away the most difficult Baltimore-area community to get a foot in the door, and more people are questioning whether the county has opened itself wide enough for households of all incomes to step through. Hallie Miller/The Baltimore Banner.
SOME YOUTH LEAN ON MENTAL HEALTH APP: A little bird helps Sarah Mann, a freshman at the University of Maryland, deal with her anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder, but it isn’t a talkative parrot or a mockingbird. It’s a virtual avatar on Finch, a self-care app Mann has used at least once a day since August 2024. The 18-year-old said Finch allows her to take control of her mental health. In the app, Mann can decide what tasks she wants to complete and what reminders to receive. Lillian Glaros of Capital News Service/MarylandReporter.com.
