State Roundup: AG Brown sues Trump administration to block massive ICE detention center in Washington County; Who’s filed for election so far?

AG BROWN SUES FEDS TO BLOCK USE OF WA CO WAREHOUSE AS ICE FACILITY: Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown filed a federal lawsuit Monday to block the Trump administration’s “unlawful decision” to convert a Washington County warehouse into a massive immigration detention center to hold 1,500 people. William Ford/Maryland Matters.

• The Department of Homeland Security bought the 825,620-square-foot warehouse in January for $102 million. In the lawsuit, Maryland officials said the Trump administration did not conduct an environmental review nor seek public input on the project or provide a reasoned explanation on their decision-making, as required by law. Jasmine Golden/The Washington Post.
• The suit filed on Monday in the U.S. District Court in Baltimore could be a roadmap for other states seeking to limit the federal agency’s footprint. Brown said the administration “secretly” purchased the warehouse without consulting with the state or surrounding community. “Federal law gives Marylanders the right to know when and how detention facilities are built in their communities,” Brown said. “That right was denied. Today, our office is taking them to court.” Brenda Wintrode and Madeleine O’Neill/The Baltimore Banner.
• As local governments in Maryland clash with the Trump administration’s plans for new federal immigration facilities, the issue is reviving a long-running constitutional question: When the federal government buys or uses property, does it have to obey state and local zoning and land use laws? Natalie Jones/The Baltimore Sun.

COLUMN: WA CO DETENTION CENTER SUPPORT IS A VALUES STATEMENT: A petition asking five Republican commissioners in Maryland’s Washington County to reverse their endorsement of a massive ICE detention center there contains an incisive description of that decision: “This was not a neutral administrative action. It was a values statement.” Dan Rodricks/Substack.

STATE LAWMAKERS CONSIDER BILLS TO CONTROL ICE FACILITIES: Maryland lawmakers want to better regulate immigration detention centers, building upon last week’s outlawing of formal partnerships between local law enforcement and U.S. ICE. The House Government, Labor and Elections Committee approved two bills Friday — each with some bipartisan support — to impose zoning restrictions and minimum condition standards for such holding facilities. Sarah Petrowich/WYPR-FM.

TRANSIT SECTY NOMINEE ON HOLD OVER QUESTIONS ON B’MORE PROJECTS: Gov. Wes Moore’s nominee for transportation secretary is in a holding pattern after a Senate confirmation hearing Monday. Kathryn Thomson, the former FAA director, faced questions about Baltimore City transportation projects. But Senate President Bill Ferguson said the hold was at the request of the Baltimore City delegation. Also, Gov. Wes Moore has filed for re-election. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.

JUVIE SERVICES ACTING SECTY FLIES THROUGH PANEL QUESTIONING: Acting Juvenile Services Secretary Betsy Fox Tolentino breezed through a panel hearing on Monday, inching a step closer to full Senate confirmation. Gov. Wes Moore threw his full support behind Tolentino after his first pick to run the agency, Vincent Schiraldi, resigned. Tolentino has been in the job since June. Brenda Wintrode/The Baltimore Banner.

WHICH CANDIDATES HAVE FILED FOR WHAT SEATS? Wes Moore is in. So are Dan Cox and Ed Hale Sr. Larry Hogan is out. The race for governor tops the list of campaigns for Maryland’s 2026 election season. But there will be far more than just the governor’s race on the ballot, and scores of candidates are lining up for a shot at public office, from county council seats to the U.S. Congress. Pamela Wood and Brenda Wintrode/The Baltimore Banner.

• Sen. Stephen S. Hershey’s contemplation of a run for governor ended quietly Friday. Hershey, a senator from the Upper Shore since October 2014, announced in September he was forming a committee to explore a run for the 2026 Republican nomination for governor.  Such a campaign would have required him to forgo running for the Senate. In the end, Hershey opted to seek re-election to the Senate. Bryan Sears/Maryland Matters.

SEN ELLIS: QUIXOTIC AND GUTSY: In the clubby, go-along-to-get-along world of Annapolis, Sen. Arthur Ellis (D-Charles) is seen as something of an odd duck. He’s not a team player. He goes off on tangents sometimes and wages quixotic battles, often in opposition to fellow Democrats. But say this for Ellis: He’s got guts. Josh Kurtz/Maryland Matters.

WHICH CONGRESSPEOPLE HAVE PLANS OTHER THAN STATE OF UNION? Members of Maryland’s congressional delegation said they plan to register their opposition to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address Tuesday — some by being there and others by being absent. Danielle Brown and William Ford/Maryland Matters.

• U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen and U.S. Rep. April McClain Delaney said they will not attend. “Trump is marching America towards fascism, and I refuse to normalize his shredding of our Constitution & democracy,” Van Hollen said on social media. “This cannot be business as usual.” Maryam Shahzad/My Montgomery County Media.

Five of the 10 members of Maryland’s congressional delegation said they plan to attend the president’s speech. Two will gather on the National Mall at an anti-Trump rally. One will respond from elsewhere on Capitol Hill. And one doesn’t know where he’ll be — but he knows it won’t be in the House chamber. It’s the delegation’s latest act of defiance toward the administration, amid a tumultuous few weeks between Maryland and the White House. Ben Mause/The Baltimore Sun.

FORMER UMD COP SEEKS RETURN OF POLICE POWERS: A former University of Maryland, College Park, police officer lost his certification last month after he was accused of sexual misconduct with a student and is now fighting to get his policing powers back, according to court records. Ben Conarck and Ellie Wolfe/The Baltimore Banner.