Monday, February 14, 2011
Superintendents across Maryland say proposed personnel cuts won’t threaten student achievement.
Maryland is once again gaining national recognition for its public school system, but county school boards faced with tightening budgets are proposing staff and program cuts that could mean fewer teachers and bigger class sizes. Still, superintendents statewide say they’re using strategic spending to prevent the worst effects. “We are spending $1,000 less per student this year than last,” said Dana Tofig, spokesperson for Montgomery County School Superintendent Jerry Weast, who heads the state’s largest school system. “Even with that we’re seeing the highest student achievement.” The state has received notable recognition for educational gains even as local systems have reduced staff, cut programs and frozen salaries in recent years. In …
Friday, January 21, 2011
State workers avoid furloughs and funding for K-12 education remain flat, but Medicaid payments to hospitals, the state employee retirement system and aid for local governments could see cuts.
- GOVERNMENT
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Friday, January 21, 2011
By David Saleh Rauf ANNAPOLIS -- Gov. Martin O'Malley is proposing nearly $1 billion in spending cuts, shuffling hundreds of millions of dollars from state funds and slashing aid to local governments to close the state's nearly $1.4 billion budget shortfall in his fiscal 2012 budget unveiled Friday. O'Malley, who has called this his most challenging budget to balance, stayed true to his pledge to present a spending plan that does not include tax hikes, though lawmakers could take steps to change that in the coming months. Under the proposed budget, state workers will avoid furloughs for the first time in three years and funding for K-12 education will remain flat at $5.7 billion -- two bright spots in an otherwise grim spending plan that …
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Gov. Martin O'Malley sworn in Wednesday.
- GOVERNMENT
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Wednesday, January 19, 2011
By David Saleh Rauf Capital News Service ANNAPOLIS — The pomp and circumstance are officially over. Gov. Martin O'Malley, 48, was sworn in Wednesday on the steps of the Capitol in front of a crowd of several hundred, including Maryland's political and business elite. He kicked off his second term with a cautiously optimistic inauguration speech about Maryland recovering from the recession, while also touching on a wide range of accomplishments since taking office in 2007. O'Malley — a rising star in the Democratic Party coming off a resounding victory over a former Republican governor — begins his second and final term in the midst of a careful balancing act: He'll need to address a series of pressing issues facing Marylanders while …
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Former Baltimore health commissioner, FDA deputy commissioner to replace John Colmers
Gov. Martin O'Malley appointed Dr. Joshua Sharfstein secretary of the state Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Wednesday. The appointment is a return of sorts for Sharfstein, who has served as deputy commissioner at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration since 2009. Prior to that he was health commissioner in Baltimore City, a position he was appointed to in 2005 by then-Mayor Martin O'Malley. "This is a special moment for us," said Sharfstein, who was accompanied by his wife, two sons and parents at an Annapolis news conference with O'Malley. "It's great to be back and I really look forward to getting to work." Sharfstein has maintained a home in Baltimore since taking the federal job. "I'm taking this job because it's an incredible …
Friday, October 29, 2010
The governor answers questions from Patch.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This video is the third of four we are posting before the Nov. 2 General Election. Both Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley and his Republican rival, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., agreed to sit down to answer questions from Patch readers, but Ehrlich had to cancel. That's why the quality of the two videos differs. We did our best to reschedule with Ehrlich but ultimately had to settle for a less intimate setting. Claim: "The tax increases were necessary because Bob Ehrlich left a bigger deficit than any governor in history after increasing spending by more than any governor in history over a four-year period." Fact: Maryland's projected deficit was estimated to reach $1.7 billion by O'Malley's second year in office, according to the …
Thursday, October 28, 2010
The former governor answers questions from Patch.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This video is the second of four we are posting before the Nov. 2 General Election. Both Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley and his Republican rival, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., agreed to sit down to answer questions from Patch readers, but Ehrlich had to cancel. That's why the quality of the two videos differs. We did our best to reschedule with Ehrlich but ultimately had to settle for a less intimate setting. Ehrlich answered questions from reporters following his speech at Towson University last week. We were able to ask a question from Matt Dernoga of College regarding wind power. But for the most part, Ehrlich discusses other environmental issues and tuition increases. Ehrlich was first asked about the Environmental Protection …
The governor answers questions from Patch.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This video is the second of four we are posting before the Nov. 2 General Election. Both Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley and his Republican rival, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., agreed to sit down to answer questions from Patch readers, but Ehrlich had to cancel. That's why the quality of the two videos differs. We did our best to reschedule with Ehrlich but ultimately had to settle for a less intimate setting. In this video O'Malley addresses public transportation and other issues raised by Patch readers. O'Malley prefers light rail; Ehrlich supports rapid bus. This video includes a question from Patch reader Patricia Reimer of Bowie, who asked: What specific steps will you take, if any, to resolve the Prince George's hospital …
helenfortier
11:56 pm on Wednesday, January 19, 2011
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