SHERIFFS URGE LAWMAKERS TO TEMPER FURTHER ANTI-ICE ACTIONS: Sheriffs traveled to Annapolis Wednesday with a message for lawmakers pushing a range of immigration protection proposals through the legislature: Don’t place politics over public safety. The sheriffs’ visit came a week after Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed a bill into law that restricts agreements between local police and federal immigration officials, and as both the House and Senate debate other measures aimed at providing new tools against policing abuses. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
HOUSE LIKELY TO OK BILL TO FIGHT ROGUE FEDERAL AGENTS: The Maryland House advanced a bill Wednesday that would give state officials and state residents new legal tools to fight federal agents in court who violate constitutional rights. House Democrats beat back a series of Republican attempts to amend the measure, which is a combination of two bills restricting immigration enforcement: a “digital unmasking” bill, to help identify masked federal agents, and the “No Kings Act,” which would allow a civil claim against anyone who violated another’s constitutional rights “under color of law.” Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
BILL SEEKS TO PROTECT PATIENTS CAUGHT UP IN INSURANCE CONTRACT DISPUTES: About 60,000 patients were forced to find new doctors or navigate complex paperwork after a contract dispute last August between UnitedHealthcare and Johns Hopkins. Now, Maryland’s top insurance regulator is pushing for new legislation to prevent patients from being caught in the middle of future disputes. Mallory Sofastaii/WMAR-TV News.
MARYLANDERS WITH DISABILITIES RETURN FOR ANOTHER BUDGET FIGHT: State lawmakers today will begin digging into the details of Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed $150 million cut to the Developmental Disabilities Administration, which serves thousands of Marylanders with intellectual and developmental disabilities. People who participate in those programs, along with their families and caregivers, are marshaling their forces against the cuts, arguing that individuals and workers would be left in the lurch. Pamela Wood/The Baltimore Banner.
ADVOCATES, LEGISLATORS SEEK MORE MENTAL HEALTH FUNDING: State legislators and mental health advocates are pushing the General Assembly for more behavioral health and substance abuse funding for 2027. The request comes as Gov. Wes Moore’s proposed budget cuts some mental health funding and freezes reimbursement rates for providers. Scott Maucione/WYPR-FM.
PROPOSAL WOULD GIVE B’MORE MORE CONTROL OVER ITS PUBLIC TRANSIT: When former Gov. Larry Hogan canceled Baltimore’s east-west Red Line in 2015, it revealed a fatal fault in the city’s public transit system: One person held nearly all the power. It didn’t matter that Baltimore’s mayor and City Council supported the light rail expansion; that congressional reps had secured federal money for it or that the state had already spent hundreds of millions of dollars on it. Now, state lawmakers seem poised to shift the power dynamic. Daniel Zawodny/The Baltimore Banner.
HARRIS VISITS STATE HOUSE TO PUSH REPEAL OF CLEAN ENERGY INITIATIVES: U.S. Rep. Andy Harris, an Eastern Shore Republican and chair of the far right U.S. House Freedom Caucus, visited the State House on Wednesday to back his colleagues’ efforts to repeal various clean energy initiatives. Sarah Petrowich/WYPR-FM.
DEL JONES WON’T SEEK REELECTION AFTER ALL: The historic legislative career of Del. Adrienne Jones (D-Baltimore County) is coming to a close. Jones, the first woman and first Black to serve as House speaker, has filed to withdraw as a candidate in the 2026 election, according to state election officials. Maryland’s chief deputy comptroller will leave the state’s tax collection agency this summer. Andrew Schaufele, a nearly 20-year veteran of the office, is stepping down effective June 1. Bryan Sears and Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.
COMMENTARY: DAN COX’s DEFEAT REVERBERATES FOR REPUBLICANS IN 2026: As we have passed the filing deadline for the 2026 Maryland State and Local Elections, the damage to the Republican bench caused by Dan Cox’s historic defeat in 2022 is ever more obvious. The most obvious failure is to recruit a candidate for Attorney General. Whereas in 2022 two competitors ran for AG, Republicans could not muster a single candidate this year. Brian Griffiths/The Duckpin.
ARUNDEL EXEC RACE DRAWS CROWDED DEMOCRATIC FIELD, ONE REPUBLICAN: A certified planner and a volunteer firefighter, both apparent newcomers to politics, have entered the race for Anne Arundel County’s top elected office. Democrat Kyle Nembhard, a Glen Burnie resident, and Republican Dave Crawford, the fire chief at the Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company, joined three other candidates who are running to succeed term-limited County Executive Steuart Pittman. Alex Mann/The Baltimore Banner.
CROWDED BALTIMORE COUNTY RACES COULD SHAKE UP LEADERSHIP: Baltimore County is on the cusp of potentially sweeping changes to its elected leadership in this year’s primary election, with a competitive Democratic primary for the county executive and crowded races for new council seats. Nine candidates have filed to run for county executive — five Democrats, two Republicans and two unaffiliated candidates. County Executive Kathy Klausmeier, who was appointed to the county’s top political post, will not run again, leaving the position wide open. Natalie Jones/The Baltimore Sun.
HARFORD SHERIFF HOPEFUL SEEKS TO KEEP OFFICE OUT OF COUNTY POLITICS: Harford County politics have been shaped by conflict between law enforcement and politicians, sheriff candidate Keith Runk says. He thinks it is time for change. Runk, pointing to tensions between Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler and County Executive Bob Cassilly over the past three years, said he is running on the belief that there is no place for police to influence the political landscape. Matt Hubbard/The Aegis.
BEREANO GETS A FRONT ROW SEAT ON ELECTION HISTORY: For at least 40 years, perhaps longer, lobbyist Bruce Bereano has taken a coveted seat in the corner of the Board of Elections office on one particular night: the state’s candidate filing deadline. Technology has come a long way since Bereano, one of the state’s best-known lobbyists, began this tradition. But the purpose is the same: To have a view of history in the making. Emily Opilo/The Baltimore Banner.
ICE STOCKPILES MORE SUPPLIES IN B’MORE: With a 180% spike of shelf-stable breakfasts, lunches and dinners coming to Baltimore and a fresh fleet of several dozen unmarked vehicles already here, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is bulking up on inventory for its downtown facilities. Luke Parker/The Baltimore Sun.
A CECIL FARM WHERE COWS PROVIDE THE MILK AND THE POWER: The farm that Alice and Caleb Crothers inherited in 2015 was, like many dairy farms nationwide, struggling — but now, cow manure is helping to keep it going. Last fall, the Crotherses started up a system — made up of a 60-foot-wide, 14-foot-deep container and special bacteria — that captures fumes from cow manure to generate electricity. Mara K. Bell of Capital News Service/Maryland Reporter.
GLIMMER OF HOPE FOR OYSTER HATCHERY THAT HAD FEDERAL FUNDS CUT: Last fall, President Donald Trump’s administration slashed support for an Eastern Shore oyster hatcher that is instrumental in the bivalves’ resurgence in the Chesapeake Bay. But there’s a glimmer of hope for the oyster incubator in the wake of a bill recently approved by Congress. The legislation, since signed into law by Trump, could restore funding for the hatchery, at least temporarily. Adam Willis/The Baltimore Banner.
