Guns, taxes, Obamacare fix: Md. General Assembly has much to resolve in final week
If compromises aren't reached by
Democratic leaders say they're hopeful
"There will be acquiescence," said
House Speaker
"I'm cautiously optimistic we're going to end on a smooth note here," Busch said. "There's been so much turmoil on the federal level that people on both sides of the aisle here have extended themselves to make policy-making bipartisan."
Still, the busiest and final week of the
They must determine whether to pass an omnibus anti-crime bill that responds to
Against the frenzied pace to enact laws before the 2018 election season begins in earnest, this week also holds potential for at least one veto override fight.
Republican Gov.
Hogan's administration, meanwhile, plans to use this last week of the last session in his four-year term to push for legislation lawmakers have never agreed to pass before -- including ceding the
"We always like to think the best of our colleagues in the
Mayer acknowledged that lawmakers in one chamber already voted against this proposal on Wednesday, the same day the
While some of the weighty measures still pending have deals in principle that just need to be executed, others appear potentially headed for impasse.
Leaders of both parties have said the state should try to shield most residents from getting bigger state income tax bills as a result of the big federal tax bill approved in
Negotiators have been working for more than a week to figure out a compromise, but as of Friday had yet to get there. They have agreed the state should keep
Busch, who has led the House since 2003, expressed optimism. Miller, who has presided over the
"I don't know," he said. "Everything else is going to pass."
Hours after Miller made that comment, action by a
The debate over whether the
Busch said he would look at the bill next week before commenting on whether his chamber would be willing to pass it this year.
The caucus had set a
Meanwhile, other large, unresolved issues appear likely to win final passage next week.
Each chamber has already given initial approval to a plan that will prevent the collapse of the individual health insurance market by imposing a
A half dozen measures to increase school safety and address gun violence are still pending, but have taken on greater urgency after the school shooting at
Lawmakers appear poised to ban possession of bump stocks, an accessory that converts a semi-automatic gun into one that can fire almost as quickly as a machine gun. Hogan has expressed support for the measure.
Last week, lawmakers approved a
Among those is a so-called "red flag" law that would allow judges to order gun owners to temporarily surrender their firearms if they're deemed a threat to themselves or others. More than 20 states have considered such laws after a former student killed 17 people at a
Lawmakers are also racing to resolve a record number of other bills before the deadline to adjourn next Monday, including legislation to relegate the state's pro-Confederate state song to a "historical" and not "official" status.
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