The study found that Maryland ranks 9th in racial integration, 11th among states that have made the most racial progress and 5th among states with the lowest poverty rate gap.
News
Maryland officials and health care advocates hope to make prescription drugs more affordable
Bipartisanship was on full display Monday as Maryland elected officials and health care advocates came together to kick off the first public discussion forum on a state prescription drug board that will have the power to set upper payment limits for high-priced prescription drugs purchased or paid for by state and local governments.
General Assembly
New Senate budget chair Guzzone forecasts a phase-in for school reforms, spending
The new chairman of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee, Howard County’s Guy Guzzone, sees a way forward by phasing in the recommendations without tax hikes – at least for the moment. “If you’re going to spend all this money, you want to see results,” Guzzone said in an interview. “What I believe by now at this point is that we have the resources right now to get this going. We have the resources to see improvements along the way.” “And we’re going to keep checking. And every time we check and realize that we’re succeeding and we’re reaching the next level of success, we can say, OK, let’s figure out how to fund that next level. I think that’s the right way to think about it.”
Environment
Maryland to phase in manure restrictions without delay
Maryland Agriculture Secretary Joseph Bartenfelder declared Monday that he saw no need to delay a state regulation that restricts the use of animal manure to fertilize farm fields, despite a study warning there are likely to be problems dealing with the excess manure that is expected to result.
News
New editor-publisher takes over MarylandReporter.com
Longtime journalist Tim Maier is the new executive editor and publisher of MarylandReporter.com, taking over day-to-day operations from editor and publisher Len Lazarick after 10 years at the helm of the site he founded in 2009. Len will remain as president of the nonprofit corporation and is now chairman of its board. He will continue to write for the website and contribute in other ways with fundraising and business functions.
FBI
‘Wrong’ Md. crime data highlights inconsistent statistics
The number of rapes in Maryland increased last year by 15% over the previous year, according to an annual FBI Uniform Crime Report, released Sept. 30. This was significant — the largest year-over-year increase for the state since the FBI’s definition of rape was revised in 2013.
It’s also wrong. In fact, many of Maryland’s crime statistics reported by government agencies are unusually inconsistent — even “astounding” and “bizarre” — according to a national crime statistics expert.
Budget
New federal budget boosts Chesapeake Bay funding
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, which guides the overall restoration work throughout the six-state watershed, will get $85 million, the most it’s ever received. That’s a 16% increase over what the program received annually from Congress for the last five years. It’s also almost $78 million more than the Trump White House had asked for this year. That request would have resulted in a nearly 90% cut to the Bay Program budget.
Environment
Young-of-year rockfish have another poor year in Md., better in Va.
Striped bass, whose population has been in decline for a decade and a half, suffered from another poor year of reproduction in Maryland, though the news was better in Virginia. Maryland’s annual young-of-year index was just 3.4, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, well below the long-term average of 11.6. It was the ninth time in the last 14 years that the state’s index reflected below-average reproduction in the state.
News
Md. youths needing psychiatric care find long waits, drives
Traveling long distances to access inpatient psychiatric care is a familiar problem for the parents of children and adolescents living in rural areas. Most juveniles who visit the emergency department for psychiatric reasons spend less than 24 hours there, but a growing number of children and adolescents are staying even longer as they wait in local emergency rooms for transfer to a more appropriate facility.
News
Maryland uses surveillance, data to track motorists, traffic
Motorists in Maryland may be aware of the cameras that enforce speed and red-light violations, but the state’s tracking practices include other layers to assist in law enforcement efforts, and for traffic and planning purposes. Through the different practices, Maryland collects both anonymous and identifiable information — depending on the method — about driving patterns, raising concerns for privacy advocates.
E-ZPass
Maryland charges big fines for skipping small tolls
As Maryland moves toward all-electronic toll billing and constituents complain about high fines that total thousands of dollars in some cases, two lawmakers are working to reduce the penalties for late video toll payments. Drivers who go through toll facilities without paying are sent a video toll invoice. If the video toll is not paid within 30 days, the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) issues a citation with a $50 civil penalty.