CITING HEALTH CARE, CONGRESSIONAL DEMS SAY NO TO SENATE PLAN: Frustrated Maryland congressional Democrats said Monday they won’t vote for a U.S. Senate plan to end the record-long government shutdown because it doesn’t address the health care issue that was their impetus for refusing to renew federal funding. Reps. Johnny Olszewski Jr., Sarah Elfreth, April McClain Delaney and others expressed deep reservations about the plan, which has split Democrats nationally because it contains no firm commitment to continue subsidies to help people pay Affordable Care Act premiums. Jeff Barker/The Baltimore Sun.
- Olszewski said Monday that if the current plan in the U.S. Senate to end the government shutdown is voted on in the House of Representatives, he will oppose it. Olszewski, whose district includes most of Baltimore County, said the proposal does nothing for Americans who are being crushed by the cost of health care. John Lee/WYPR-FM.
ALSOBROOKS, VAN HOLLEN VOTED AGAINST REOPENING GOV’T: Maryland Sens. Angela Alsobrooks and Chris Van Hollen voted against the bipartisan deal to reopen the government on Monday night, joining a majority of Senate Democrats who remain opposed to opening the government before addressing the expiring Affordable Care Act premium tax credits. The funding package passed 60 to 40, with seven Democrats and one Independent in favor. Ben Mause/The Baltimore Sun.
FIFTH BAY CLEANUP AGREEMENT FINALLY COMES TOGETHER: Leaders of this long effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay will convene in Baltimore in December to sign their new pact, the fifth since that inaugural 1983 conference. After staff spent nearly a year hashing out the new terms, the governors’ signatures are a formality. The plan, though, didn’t come together easily. Adam Willis/The Baltimore Banner.
VETERANS SECY TALKS OF PRIORITIES, CHALLENGES IN MARYLAND: Ahead of Veterans Day on Tuesday, Col. Edward C. “Ed” Rothstein, secretary of the Maryland Department of Veterans and Military Families, talked about his priorities for his office, challenges facing veterans and his own experience returning to civilian life. Todd Karpovich/The Baltimore Sun.
NONPROFIT FEDERAL CONTRACTOR LOSES $110K A MONTH DURING SHUTDOWN: Melwood, one of Maryland’s oldest nonprofits serving disabled people, sends workers into federal agencies for jobs in landscaping, administrative and janitorial services. Because of the shutdown, many of those employees are working half-time. And Melwood, which has continued paying them their full benefits, is losing about $110,000 a month, said the organization’s chief operating officer. The Prince George’s nonprofit is part of wide-ranging ecosystem of federal contractors in Maryland. Giacomo Bologna/The Baltimore Banner.
BA CO DEFENDS ICE MEMORANDUM AS CONSISTENT WITH KAMENETZ ORDER: In 2017, then-Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz signed an executive order, in part to protect immigrants who are in the county jail from federal authorities. That order remains in place. But there are those who believe that executive order is threatened by a recently signed agreement between the county and Immigration and Customs Enforcement or ICE. John Lee/WYPR-FM.
32-YEAR-OLD ENGINEER TO CHALLENGE STATE SEN. KING IN DEM PRIMARY: Amar Mukunda of Germantown, a 32-year-old engineer and entrepreneur making his first run for elected office, filed Friday to challenge veteran state Sen. Nancy King of Montgomery Village in next June’s Democratic primary in upcounty District 39. Mukunda had filed in September to seek one of the three House of Delegates nominations from District 39, but dropped out of that contest Friday shortly before filing for state Senate. Louis Peck/Bethesda Today.
B’MORE SANITATION, OTHER MUNICIPAL WORKERS RATIFY CONTRACT: Baltimore City municipal employees have ratified a contract that promises significant pay increases, improved health and safety protections, and expanded workplace rights for nearly 2,200 workers represented by AFSCME. Mark Reutter/Baltimore Brew.
FACULTY COMMITTEE VOTES NO CONFIDENCE IN HOWARD COLLEGE PRES: A committee representing all full-time faculty at Howard Community College voted no confidence in college President Daria Willis, alleging a lack of transparency and accountability, in the latest clash between the school’s top administrator and its staff. Jess Nocera/The Baltimore Banner.
WA CO 2026 EARLY VOTING SITES STILL UP IN THE AIR: The proposed sites for early voting in Washington County in 2026 still have hurdles to clear and could end up changing. The Washington County Board of Elections, in a split vote on Oct. 14, moved to submit the Washington County Free Library in downtown Hagerstown, the Boonsboro American Legion and the Clear Spring American Legion to the Maryland State Board of Elections as its three required early voting sites. Julie Greene/The Hagerstown Herald Mail.
