HOGAN DEFENDS VAXX ROLLOUT: Gov. Larry Hogan said Tuesday that while the state’s rollout of coronavirus vaccines has not been perfect he is nevertheless confident that all that can be done to improve the situation is in fact being done, reports Bryan Renbaum for Maryland Reporter. Maryland ranks 42 out 50 among states with regard to vaccine administration, according to the CDC.
- Hogan also doubled down Tuesday on his comment last week that Baltimore received more COVID-19 vaccines than it was “entitled to,” though data released this week by his administration shows the majority of immunizations directed to providers in the city have been shot into the arms of people from other jurisdictions, Alex Mann and Sanya Kamidi of the Sun report.
- Hogan also announced that a mass COVID-19 vaccination site will open in Charles County on Thursday, and the Department of Health has secured sites in Western Maryland and on the Eastern Shore that will be capable of doing high-volume vaccinations starting later this month, Bruce DePuyt of Maryland Matters reports.
MO CO HEALTH OFFICER SLAMS STATEVAXX ROLLOUT: Montgomery County health officer Dr. Travis Gayles on Tuesday criticized the state’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout during a briefing with the County Council, saying “accountability” and “effective leadership” are missing from Maryland’s distribution plan, Briana Adhikusuma of Bethesda Beat reports.
HOGAN TAPS REDFIELD AS CHIEF COVID ADVISER: Former top federal public health official Dr. Robert Redfield will serve as a senior adviser for Maryland’s COVID-19 response, including the state’s vaccination campaign, which soon will feature mass vaccination clinics in five geographic regions, Gov. Larry Hogan announced Tuesday, Alex Mann and Pamela Wood of the Sun report.
- Redfield returns to Maryland as Hogan’s senior adviser to public health. In that position, the governor said, the former CDC head will advise on a wide range of priorities related to the coronavirus and its variants, vaccination efforts and reopening the state, Bryan Sears reports for the Daily Record.
SENATE DEBATES DISCLOSING POLICE MISCONDUCT PROBES: The Maryland Senate took a step Tuesday toward passing legislation aimed at increasing public access to completed internal police investigations, as it narrowly defeated a proposal to ensure allegations of police misconducted deemed “unsubstantiated” would remain confidential, Steve Lash of the Daily Record reports.
- While some believe that the transparency the bill is looking to provide goes too far, others argue that chiefs and sheriffs too often allow investigations to be swept under the rug, leaving civilians in the dark and problematic officers to continue to act inappropriately in the field, Hannah Gaskill of Maryland Matters reports.
BILL WOULD GIVE SENIOR ATHLETES AN EXTRA YEAR OF SPORT: A proposed bill in Maryland General Assembly could allow senior athletes at public high schools to play sports the year after they graduate, to make up for the challenges and unusual circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic, CNS’s Jacob Steinberg reports in Maryland Reporter.
STUDY: D.C. AREA CHILDREN SUFFERING: A new nationwide study examining how U.S. households are faring with COVID-19 paints a bleak picture for children and families in the D.C. region, Glynis Kazanjian of WTOP-FM reports. Save the Children’s report, found nearly half of D.C. families with children are behind on their rent payments. Maryland was counted among the lowest-rated jurisdictions for access and availability of food, one of the three major categories in the study referred to as “food scarcity.”
ENERGY EFFICIENCY FOR EQUITY & INCLUSION: Innovative strategies, business models, and technologies can be used to address underserved markets. Join the Maryland Clean Energy Center for this Policy Watch Session on March 8, from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m., to discuss how new policies or changes in existing policy can be used to minimize or eliminate barriers in these areas. Advance registration is required.
4 DELEGATES JOIN NATIONAL CLIMATE GROUP: Four Maryland lawmakers joined a national network of public officials who support holding corporate polluters accountable for their contributions to the climate crisis. Dels. Lorig Charkoudian (D-Montgomery), Dana Stein (D-Baltimore County), Vaughn Stewart (D-Montgomery) and Jennifer R. Terrasa (D-Howard) announced Tuesday that they are joining Leaders for Climate Accountability, Elizabeth Shwe of Maryland Matters reports.
STUDY FINDS FREDERICK MONORAIL FEASIBLE, BUT WITH QUESTIONS: Building a monorail along Interstate 270 from Frederick to the Shady Grove Metro station is physically possible, but the impacts of the project on other transportation systems and other factors need further study, according to a new report released by the Maryland Department of Transportation, Ryan Marshall reports for the Frederick News-Post.
KUSHNER COS. SELLING HALF OF B’MORE APT COMPLEXES: Kushner Cos., the real estate firm that had been led by former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, is selling about half its Baltimore-area apartment complexes, including those mentioned in a complaint filed by the Maryland attorney general’s office for its alleged mistreatment of tenants, Lorraine Mirabella of the Sun reports.
HUGE CHUNK OF DONATIONS TO KLACIK GO CONSULTANT: Meagan Flynn and Michael Scherer of the Post use failed Maryland congressional candidate Kimberly Klacik to describe how some Republican campaigns that attract millions in donations end up paying a huge chunk of it to consulting firms instead. When she was told how much, she said, “I almost passed out.” They pay handsomely, even when they – like Klacik, are running in deep-blue districts where it is virtually impossible for them to win. The more viral the candidate goes, the more money the companies make — a model possible only through the online outrage machine of hyperpartisan politics.
U.S. REP. SARBANES’ BILL ON CAMPAIGN FINANCE UP FOR A VOTE: For years, Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) had an ongoing experiment: testing his campaign-finance legislation on his own reelection races. Meagan Flynn of the Post reports that today, the new public campaign-financing system Sarbanes envisions will go up for a vote as part of a sweeping campaign-finance and voting-access package he’s worked on for the better part of 15 years.
HARDEN KICKS OFF CANDIDACY FOR U.S. REP: R. David Harden, who spent years overseas with the U.S. Agency for International Development, is the latest Democrat to announce he will run next year against U.S. Rep. Andy Harris, the sixth-term Republican from Baltimore County. “We are going to bring jobs home, create a next generation economy, and seize the future ….” he tweeted on Monday.
