ANNAPOLIS – As more public records become available in electronic format, state agencies are hard-pressed to provide information affordably and still make ends meet, officials say

Thomas Francis Meagher, an Irish rebel convicted of sedition by the British, escaped from an Australian penal colony in 1849, but never carried out his plans to return to his homeland and rid it of the British

BALTIMORE – Young people who enter the work force immediately after graduation from high school have poor writing, reading and communication skills, according to findings of a new survey by the Maryland Business Roundtable for Education

ANNAPOLIS – Three Western Maryland counties will get about $500,000 to maintain and expand local parks, the Board of Public Works announced Wednesday

ANNAPOLIS – Voter support for an increase in the state sales tax on cigarettes may be stronger than party loyalty, according to poll results released Wednesday by an anti-tobacco coalition

WASHINGTON – A House panel voted Wednesday to offer more life insurance coverage to federal workers and their families

ANNAPOLIS – The Board of Public Works is expected Wednesday to transfer $30,100 in state funds to the University of Maryland at College Park for a library dedicated in memory of Lucille Maurer, the late state treasurer

ANNAPOLIS – The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that when a parent consents to a police search of his or her home, police may search any personal belongings left in common areas by a minor child, even if the child objects

WASHINGTON – Eighth-graders in Maryland public schools scored below the national average in a science test last year, the Education Department said Tuesday

ANNAPOLIS – A program that provides rehabilitative services for non-violent substance abuse offenders will take its first steps Wednesday toward expanding into six other counties