January 24, 2020

School Construction “Game Changer” Draws a Crowd

Photo Credit: @BaltCoExec

Legislative leadership and a panoply of county officials decorated the hallways and testimony table in Annapolis on January 23, as House Bill 1 – the Speaker’s “Built to Learn Act” – was heard in the Appropriations Committee. The far-reaching bill leverages casino revenues for revenue bonds, providing a short-term infusion of over $2 billion to school construction projects. County leaders voiced their support – Strong State Funding for School Construction has been a recurring MACo Initiative in recent years.

Hearing/Testimony | Single-Issue Podcast

MACo to Ways and Means Committee: Prioritize Schools, Behavioral Health, Local Decision-Making Local Preemption Targeted by LOCAL Maryland Coalition, and MACo Bill Counties Raise Concerns for Unfunded School Route Mandate

Hettleman Nominated as Replacement for Vacant Senate Seat General Assembly Veto Override Votes Delayed Until Next Week Governor Hogan Requests More Temporary Visas for Seasonal Seafood Workers

Fiscal Briefing Highlights Budget Big Picture MACo Opposes Overly-Broad Tax, Fee Exemptions Governor’s 2021 Budget Proposal – What It Means for Counties

Montgomery Receives Approval for New Vision Zero Tool Annual Environmental Legislative Summit Happening January 29th MDE Hosting Public Engagement Meetings on Draft Climate Change Plan

Maryland Ranks #2 in Most Educated State List Delegate Floats Idea: School Taxes in Maryland? New Term Helping Students Path to Success?

Maryland Board of Public Works – January 29, 2020 Agenda New High-Tech Fulfillment Center to Bring Hundreds of Jobs to Frederick St. Mary’s Residents to Celebrate Local History with Artifact Donations

Baltimore County Passes SAFE Act for Gun Store Security Counties Propose Amendments to Pretrial Tool Reassessments Vox Highlights Maryland’s Unique Health Care System Statewide “Source of Income” Housing Policy Proposed

State Fire Marshall Issues Warning About New Social Media Challenge Harford County to Host Free Citizen Emergency Preparedness Training Charles County to Host Citizens Academy this Spring

Conduit Street Podcast Corner:

Conduit Street Podcast: “Supercharging” School Construction On the latest episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, Kevin Kinnally and Michael Sanderson discuss the latest news and notes from Annapolis. This week, we break down the Built to Learn Act of 2020 -- which would drive an additional $2.2 billion in school construction funding, by leveraging casino “lockbox” revenues for bonds.

Listen to any Conduit Street Podcast Episode: www.mdcounties.org/Podcast

Counties In Action

Baltimore City Mayor Young Unveils New Plaque Renaming East Court House Elijah E. Cummings Court House

Dorchester Speaker Jones Honors Dorchester Girl in Viral Photo of Harriet Tubman Memorial

Howard @CommuteHoward to Host BikeHoward Open House Wednesday, Jan. 29

Corporate Partner Corner

BGE Awards Harford County Elementary School $10,000 in Natural Gas Heroes Challenge MACo's Gold Corporate Partner BGE selected a fourth grade student from Fountain Green Elementary School in Bel Air, MD as the winner of this year's Captain Mercaptan Natural Gas Energy Heroes Contest. From BGE : The Adventures of Captain Mercaptan®, a BGE Natural Gas Safety Hero Challenge is an annual contest offered every fall and is open to all public and private elementary schools in BGE's service area. The contest challenges students to submit a three-panel comic strip illustrating a natural gas safety message featuring Captain Mercaptan, BGE's fictional natural gas safety superhero. The winning entry, and all additional entries, can be viewed on BGE's website .

Fourth Grade Contest Winner, pictured with WBAL's Meteorologist Ava Marie. Credit : @HarfordCountyMD

County Executive Barry Glassman pictured with BGE's Captain Mercaptan mascot. Credit: @HarfordCountyMD

MACo Corporate Partner Program Details

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