BLACK WOMEN’s FOOTHOLD IN FEDERAL WORKFORCE FALTERS: With Black women as a substantial percentage of the federal workforce, the recent shutdown has brought additional pain on top of earlier job cuts. Employment among Black women in the public and private sectors nationwide dropped by more than 300,000 between February — a month after President Donald Trump returned to office — and August, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. For Black women, that meant their unemployment rate rose from 5.4% to 6.7% during the same period. John-John Williams IV and Allan James Vestal/The Baltimore Banner.
STATE DOWN 300,000 RESIDENTS OVER 13 YEARS: A new economic report from the Comptroller’s Office says Maryland has seen a significant loss of residents to other states for more than a decade. The comptroller’s 78-page analysis report on “Housing & the Economy” says that from 2010 to 2023, Maryland saw 2.3 million residents move to other states, outpacing the 2 million moving into Maryland in that time. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
MORE OUT-OF-STATERS SEEK FINANCIAL HELP FOR ABORTIONS IN MARYLAND: Thousands of people a year make a trip to Maryland for abortions, with a brief spike to 8,210 in the year after the Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision in 2022. But many can’t manage the trip or pay for the abortion. The number seeking help has soared, according to the Abortion Fund of Maryland, which provides logistical and financial assistance to women seeking to end their pregnancies. It reported a nearly 24% increase in the number of calls this year to the private nonprofit compared to last year. Out-of-state residents now make up about 40% of the group’s clients. Meredith Cohn/The Baltimore Banner.
CONCERNS GROW OVER AI’s IMPACT ON MARYLAND’s 2026 ELECTIONS: As artificial intelligence technology advances, creating convincing fake images and videos has become easier and faster, raising concerns about how this could impact Maryland’s upcoming 2026 elections. Jeff Morgan/WMAR-TV News.
A LANDFILL SITS ON PROTECTED STATE PARKLAND; WHY? The Days Cove section of Gunpowder Falls State Park is a forested wetland, where bald eagles perch in towering trees, great blue herons stalk the water’s edge and bass dart beneath the surface. It’s also home to a towering rubble landfill that has come under renewed scrutiny as it seeks a state permit to double the amount of treated leachate it discharges into tributaries of the Gunpowder River. Environmental groups, community associations and local elected officials have urged the state to reject the permit. Sapna Bansil/The Baltimore Banner.
ANNAPOLIS’ REPUBLICAN MAYORAL HOPEFUL RAISING MORE FUNDS: Republican candidate Robert O’Shea has picked up the pace of fundraising as the Annapolis mayoral race entered its final month, but he has still been vastly out-raised overall by Democratic mayoral candidate Jared Littmann, according to the latest campaign finance reports. Katherine Wilson/The Baltimore Sun.
PG COUNCIL OKs CONTROVERSIAL PICK TO HEAD ENVIRO DEPT: Prince George’s County Council on Tuesday confirmed multiple appointments for department heads made by County Executive Aisha Braveboy, including a controversial one for the county’s environmental department, which will be led by a former administrator who had been fired by the agency. Lateshia Beachum/The Washington Post.
- The County Council overwhelmingly approved Samuel Moki to lead the Department of the Environment after a lively and, at times, contentious 90-minute hearing. The 8-2 vote came over the objection of witnesses who said Moki’s history — he was fired a decade ago from the agency he will now run — for gross negligence, a finding that was repeatedly upheld in administrative and legal appeals. Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.
WANIKA FISHER LAUNCHES RUN FOR PG STATE’S ATTY: Prince George’s County Councilmember Wanika Fisher (D) officially launched her campaign Tuesday night to become the county’s top prosecutor, flanked by several current and former county Democratic officials at Newton White Mansion in Mitchellville. William Ford and Steve Crane.
PG ON CUSP OF OVERTURNING PIT BULL BAN: A bill moving through the Prince George’s County Council would both strengthen penalties against dogs that are deemed dangerous, but also allow people to register pit bulls in the county — and even adopt them from county animal shelters. It’s being pushed by Council Chair Ed Burroughs, who said the 1996 law banning pit bulls just doesn’t work. John Domen/WTOP-FM.
SCHOOL AI GUN DETECTOR MISTAKES BAG OF CHIPS FOR WEAPON: Last year, Baltimore County high schools began using a gun detection system that employs artificial intelligence to detect potential weapons by utilizing existing school cameras. On Monday, police pulled up to Kenwood High, with weapons drawn forced a student to the ground and searched him. Police showed the student the picture that triggered the AI detector. “I was just holding a Doritos bag… it was two hands and one finger out, and they said it looked like a gun,” the youth said. Khiree Stewart/ WBAL-TV News.
8% OF B’MORE NONPROFITS ‘DELINQUENT’ ON STATE REQUIREMENTS: Nearly 8% of all nonprofits based in Baltimore City have not met their financial obligations to the state of Maryland. According to data published by online portal Maryland OneStop, 81 out of the 1,064 nonprofits with a Baltimore address had a registration status of “delinquent,” meaning they have not satisfied all Maryland Secretary of State requirements for soliciting funds. Carson Swick/The Baltimore Sun.
