Hundreds of Maryland laws are going into effect Tuesday, spanning subjects from criminal justice reform to election law to medical cannabis. Here is a roundup of some of those, broken down by subject.
Annapolis
Therapy puppies help teens in Maryland juvenile centers
Maryland’s Department of Juvenile Services has implemented a pilot puppy therapy program at two of their secure facilities to help resident teens cope with stress and anxiety.
Thousands urge Washington and the world to take action on climate change
By NORA ECKERT, DAN NOVAK, HEATHER KIM, AYANA ARCHIE and HORUS ALAS Capital News Service WASHINGTON – Thousands took to the streets of the nation’s capital on Friday as part of a global youth strike for climate change, wielding signs…
Md. Revenue Estimates board updates tax projections
The Maryland Board of Revenue Estimates voted unanimously Thursday to increase the state’s projected revenues for the current fiscal year by just under $130 million, but cautioned that the uptick “is not indicative of long-term economic growth.”
Annual cocaine overdose deaths on rise in Maryland
Despite some good news from the first quarter of this year, cocaine-related deaths have skyrocketed annually in Maryland since 2015, with nearly half of those occurring in Baltimore. The vast majority of those deaths — 82%, according to the Maryland Department of Health — involved fentanyl, a powerful and dangerous synthetic opioid.
Md. lawmakers, AG question DeVos on loan forgiveness program
Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh and a coalition of state lawmakers have asked U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos why so many people are being denied by the federal Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
Maryland eyes Dorian for coastal flooding, rip current risks
Maryland lifeguards and emergency managers kept a close eye on possible threats from coastal flooding and rip currents as Hurricane Dorian meandered up the mid-Atlantic coast Friday afternoon and began a projected arc out to sea.
Opening the curtains: The data behind 90 days in Annapolis
Capital News Service gathered data from the 2019 legislative session and conducted an analysis to report on some of the most striking takeaways from the General Assembly.
Md.’s consumer advocates push for new debt collection laws
Some of Maryland’s debt collection laws haven’t been updated since the Reagan administration. Lawmakers and consumer advocates are trying to update the law to protect low-income Marylanders from punitive collection tactics like wage garnishment and body attachments.
Bartlett’s first stint at Md. Statehouse highlights her passion to help the vulnerable
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Years after volunteering for the gubernatorial and Senate campaigns of Douglas Wilder and Barbara Mikulski, J. Sandy Bartlett had a conversation that would prove to be life-changing. Bartlett had been approached by then-state Sen. James E. DeGrange…