MOORE BLASTS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FOR HARMING PUBLIC EDUCATION: Gov. Wes Moore repeatedly criticized President Donald Trump’s administration for hampering Maryland’s educational progress during a keynote address Wednesday at the Education Writers Association national conference. “We cannot make up for the damage that is being done to public education by the federal administration,” Moore said. Ellie Wolfe/The Baltimore Banner.
AUDIT FINDS BCCC AWARDED FINANCIAL AID TO ‘GHOST STUDENTS:’ A state audit shows Baltimore City Community College awarded $264,000 in financial aid to 145 potentially fictitious or “ghost students.” “This often involves AI-powered bots that mass-apply to colleges, create fake accounts, and submit fake assignments to maintain the illusion of enrollment long enough to receive financial aid refunds,” according to the audit released Wednesday by the Office of Legislative Audits. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
MILLIONS IN DEFENSE DOLLARS FLOW IN CARROLL COUNTY: The Department of Defense has invested tens of millions of dollars in contracts for Westminster-based businesses since the beginning of the year. A portion of a $29.2 million contract awarded to Raytheon in January for missile production expansion efforts will go toward work to be completed in Westminster. A $16.8 million contract was awarded to a Westminster company in March for forestry work at Aberdeen Proving Ground. And besides Northrop Grumman, smaller defense businesses have a presence in Carroll County as well. Gabriella Fine/The Carroll County Times.
WILL NEW MARYLAND LAW AID THIS CONVICTED KILLER? Maryland lawmakers last year passed a hotly debated bill allowing some people who’ve served significant time for crimes they committed when they were young to have their sentences reconsidered. Chris McBride, now 56, who stabbed a man to death when he was 23, wanted to be among the first people in prison to have their case reviewed. Dylan Segelbaum/The Baltimore Banner.
HOUSING COSTS PUSH MARYLANDERS TO RELOCATE IN & OUT OF STATE: A new Johns Hopkins University study found rising housing costs are driving many Baltimore-area residents to consider moving within the next three years. The mobility study surveyed 1,492 residents in Baltimore City and county in fall 2024. According to the data, 61% expect to move to a different neighborhood within three years. Nearly 40% of those respondents said they’d relocate within Maryland, while others anticipated leaving the state entirely. Wambui Kamau/WYPR-FM.
AS DEADLY DISEASE FESTERS, ALSOBROOKS DOUBLES DOWN AGAINST KENNEDY: U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) has called for the removal of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. from his position for over a year, but hammered that message once again this week as a number of highly dangerous infectious diseases emerge across the world. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
GROUP THAT HELPED MAMDANI ELECTION SEEKS TO OUST SHELLENBERGER: The Working Families Party, the Brooklyn-based progressive group that helped get Zohran Mamdani elected mayor of New York, is making its next big gamble — this time in Baltimore County. The national organization’s political action committee has dropped $737,373 in recent weeks on mailers and commercials supporting Sarah David, who is attempting to unseat 19-year incumbent Scott Shellenberger as the county’s top prosecutor, campaign finance records show. Sapna Bansil/The Baltimore Banner.
B’MORE MAYOR’s PROGRAM SEEKS MILLIONS MORE IN FUNDING: As Baltimore City budget hearings continue, one agency already under scrutiny is asking for millions more in taxpayer funding. The Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement is seeking an additional $8.2 million in the city’s fiscal year 2027 budget — a 36.7% increase that would bring the agency’s total funding to more than $30.6 million. Rebecca Pryor/WBFF-TV News.
CALVIN BALL BREAKS SILENCE, ENDORSES ATTERBEARY FOR HOWARD COUNTY EXEC: Breaking his long silence about whom he would like to succeed him, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball gave a rousing endorsement to former Del. Vanessa Atterbeary Wednesday night, while attacking her two opponents as champions of division and obstruction on the County Council. Len Lazarick/Maryland Reporter.
CAMPAIGN FINANCING HOT TOPIC AS HOWARD EXEC CANDIDATES DEBATE: With early voting set to begin on June 11, the four Democratic candidates for Howard County executive convened for their 13th debate Thursday, sparring over questions about housing affordability, education funding, public safety and economic development. Yet the debate repeatedly veered back toward the topic of campaign financing and political influences throughout the night. Lillian Reed/The Baltimore Banner.
ARUNDEL PUBLIC TEACHERS’ PAY LAGS BEHIND STATE AVERAGE: Anne Arundel County Public Schools teachers are making about $3,200 less than the average Maryland teacher this school year. Educators applauded recent raises, but they said the county lags behind its peers in teacher pay. Tanisha Bhat/The Baltimore Sun.
COLUMN: SCORE A VICTORY FOR ARUNDEL’s NEW AUDITOR: Somewhere, there’s an Anne Arundel County park superintendent out of a job. The county won’t say who was fired yet, or which park was involved. As many as seven other Recreation and Parks employees face transfers and punishment. The only public description of the scandal is tucked into an obscure corner of the county website. The reason this is being revealed in such an odd fashion is the agency that exposed the fraud — the Office of the County Auditor. Rick Hutzell/The Baltimore Banner.
