Session to look at tax issues, health care, insurance for kids
Instead, state lawmakers gathering Wednesday in
They'll try to tamp down skyrocketing insurance premiums and debate whether to set aside
And they'll have a partisan fight over the best way to accomplish the widely shared goal of reducing the record homicide rate in
All of it will take place against the backdrop of election-year politicking, with lawmakers wary of taking tough votes that could be hard to explain to constituents.
But the issue mostly likely to dominate the annual 90-day marathon of legislating will be whether to return a windfall in state tax revenue prompted by federal tax changes, and if so, how much and to whom.
"It is an economic war,"
Miller, a Democrat, said he'd support an extended session or call for a special session in order to get the tax rewrite right.
"The question is, what do we do?" Miller said. "If the money is forthcoming, what do we do with it?"
Because so much of
Analysts still are calculating the details, but initial estimates have ranged anywhere from
"If we don't do anything, technically we're going to be giving Marylanders a tax increase," said Senate Minority Leader
Republican Gov.
"We don't want to force a larger - potentially a half-billion-dollar more - tax increase to pay for them," Hogan said.
But leading
"Absolutely, I think the Democratic leadership is going to focus on how best to help or protect Marylanders who have been harmed by this tax bill," said Baltimore Del.
McIntosh, chair of the Appropriations Committee, said if there is a windfall for the state treasury, lawmakers will have to balance the need for tax relief against other priorities such as the
"If I know we have a windfall and I knew we had
House Speaker
Hogan, meanwhile, said in an interview Friday that he's hopeful
Beyond looking for ways to shore up federal programs, some lawmakers see a chance to restructure how
Even if there was consensus, proposals for rejiggering
The tax debate is certain to spawn acrimony as special-interest groups and others see an opportunity to gain advantages.
"There's a possibility that there will be a lot of grandstanding," said House Minority Leader
Along with taxes, legislative leaders from both parties say they're considering ways to stabilize
"Something has to happen," said House Minority
Presiding officers Busch and Miller said the session will open with an override of Hogan's veto last year of paid sick-leave legislation.
Although Hogan has announced plans to introduce a competing paid sick-leave bill this year, Busch and Miller say it's not necessary. They are confident they have enough votes in their respective chambers to reach the required three-fifths' majority to reinstate the law the Assembly passed last year requiring many businesses to offer paid sick leave.
Leaders in both parties and from across
But
"The problem is we're not putting criminals behind bars," Hogan said.
Kipke, leader of the House's 50
"There's sort of a rotating door of violent criminals who are coming in and out of our prisons and into our neighborhoods," Kipke said.
Many
"It is very shortsighted to think we can address violence in
The upcoming session offers Hogan, a popular Republican in a Democrat-leaning state, his last chance to push legislative initiatives ahead of his closely watched re-election bid.
The governor has not unveiled his full agenda, but in addition to a tax overhaul he has promised to seek tax breaks for retired first responders and military veterans and to expand a job-creation tax credit program passed last year. Hogan also has promised to bring back for the fourth year his plan to take congressional and legislative redistricting out of the hands of lawmakers and entrust it to an independent commission.
Miller and Busch, meanwhile, have promised to expand
That initiative is among the top priorities for the
Glenn said she also expects
Environmentalists, for example, hope action - or inaction - by the federal government could motivate
Trump pulled out of the international climate change accord known as the Paris Agreement, and prominent state lawmakers plan to push
"Everyone is sort of waiting to see how the national conversations drive state politics," said
Hogan, who pushed ethics reforms embraced by the
Miller said Oaks intends to remain in the
"It would be unfair for me or the ethics committee to unseat him," Miller said. "
Key issues await
*Medical marijuana: As 2017 ended, it appeared the
*Environment: Clean-energy advocates will push a bill requiring that
*Sick leave override:
*Redistricting proposal: Hogan is expected to again propose putting the task of drawing congressional and legislative district lines in the hands of an independent commission. There are no signs the majority
*Parental rights for rapists: Women's advocates came to the brink of passing a bill last year to permit revocation of parental rights of fathers when children were conceived through rape. It failed on the last night on a disagreement over details. Legislative leaders want the issue resolved early this session.
*Psychiatric beds: The Hogan administration will come under pressure from lawmakers to hire enough staff to add beds in psychiatric hospitals. The state health department is appealing an order finding it in civil contempt for failing to respond to court orders quickly enough when judges commit a defendant to care.
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Credit: By
Laws & Order (hopefully)
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