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I often remark in this email and my day-to-day conversations with people that I try to stay in my lane as a state elected official. But so much of what the current federal Administration does makes my blood boil and disproportionately impacts Maryland. Many District 16 residents go in and out of DC almost every day. The Nation's Capital has never been a perfect utopia, but the dystopian "Mad Max" caricature the White House has used to justify militarizing the streets to distract from other scandals and unpopular decisions is a complete mischaracterization. And it is true that DC's Home Rule Act gives a president unusual powers there, but this president has made clear time and again that he sees no limits for himself and has already name checked future expansions of his police state, including in Maryland. But of course, this is just another outrage on top of firing a federal statistician for delivering bad but accurate news, demanding paid tributes by private businesses that scoff when any other president suggests they should pay their lawful taxes, requiring a review of the Smithsonian's exhibits to make sure they are consistent with a nostalgic 1950s America that never truly was, and more then I can fit in this paragraph. You can see some of my views on all of this in comments I made at the Good Trouble rally in Friendship Heights a few weeks ago, which you can watch here. So with that therapeutic introduction out of the way, let me turn more directly to District 16. One of the most enjoyable parts of serving here has been participating in ribbon cuttings for new businesses in District 16. My kids are always amused when we eat somewhere, buy something at a store, or even just walk by a place and I recount having been there for the ribbon cutting. But the real stories are the incredible entrepreneurs investing in their concepts and their community. With the disruptive change brought by Washington, we need these economic risk takers investing in us more than ever. And it has been a busy summer of them. The two most recent ribbon cuttings were The Cordell, a new event place in downtown Bethesda and The Sleep-In-Mind Clinic, which provides pediatric and young adult sleep medicine.  LEGISLATIVE UPDATE I serve on the General Assembly's Joint Federal Oversight Action Committee, along with other members of the House and Senate leadership. Our most recent briefing was an update from the Comptroller's office on the economic impact of federal actions and an update on immigration issues from the Governor's office and Attorney General's office. Watch the briefing here. Read the briefing materials here. ----- Last month I shared a high level update on the effect of the federal budget reconciliation law on Maryland. Read a deeper dive from the Department of Legislative Services on the impact of the federal reconciliation bill on Maryland, focusing on healthcare, food assistance, and taxes. ---- I also had the chance to share my views on some of the impact the federal changes are having on the I Hate Politics Podcast recently. Listen here.  HIGHER EDUCATION UPDATE Here are some reminders from the Maryland Higher Education Commission on the state’s student loan relief tax credit. More information can be found here.   TRANSPORTATION UPDATE Recently, the Maryland Department of Transportation posted a federal grant application narrative on their website for a Large Bridge Investment Program grant to support work on the American Legion Bridge. You can find the page where they share federal grant requests here: MDOT Transportation Discretionary Grants - MDOT. You can get directly to the narrative here. If this feels like Groundhog Day, it is because this is not the first time Maryland has applied for this grant. It has happened several times under the current and prior Governor. In the fall of 2023, I wrote at length about the (unsuccessful) grant application submitted then and the Governor's announcement around that. Following a flurry of public meetings, the issue has been largely quiet. Many of my September 2023 comments remain in case someone is interested in a deep dive. For example, the announcement then talked about the Brunswick Line and improvements, where virtually nothing has happened. It also says the environmental process would start on 270--I believe to address the northern bottleneck--but nothing has occurred. I also wrote then about some of what I would like to see, including much more corridor level community engagement that has not occurred. But I will make a few specific observations regarding this new application and then some broader points below. "While structurally safe, the bridge will require extensive repairs within the next decade, including rehabilitation of the deck." This is a sample of the safety-related language in the application and it is crucial. We need a safe bridge. I think that is something everyone can agree on. "The project corridor is approximately 6.5 miles of interstate and begins south of the George Washington Memorial Parkway (GWMP) on I-495 and extends north of Westlake Terrace on the I-270 West Spur." This is the current project scope, which is useful for people to understand. It does not go further north on 270--although the environmental approval for that still exists up to where 370 meets 270. "Contract A will include the Large BIP limits within the section from the George Washington Memorial Parkway to south of Seven Locks Road. It will be advertised in July 2026 with contract award/notice to proceed issued in July 2027 to begin final design and construction. Contract B will run from south of Seven Locks Road to the project terminus north of Westlake Terrace. It will be advertised in April 2027, with the respective contract award/notice to proceed to be issued in April 2028. Based on the outlined scheduled, it is estimated that both contracts will be open to traffic by 2034." This is the dream schedule the state has for the project. "The total cost for the eight bridges and necessary approach interstate (1.66 miles) in this BIP application is $1,728,074,000. ... For this Large BIP grant application, SHA is requesting $864 million for the eight bridges and approach interstate, which is 50% of the total cost." The funding request only covers Contract A above. The rest of the funding is envisioned to come from a state match and other federal sources. "SHA will therefore maintain the same number of free, general-purpose lanes as exist today throughout the study limits that are open to all users." This statement is as misleading today for any normal reader as when the prior Administration used the same talking point. The plan is to convert an existing High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane on 270's western spur into a High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lane. The HOV lane is currently restricted to carpool traffic for three hours today, which means for 21 hours a day it acts as a general-purpose lane and that will change as a result of the proposal. I will charitably say that the HOV lane is still not considered a "general-purpose" lane in transportation wonk speak so this statement is technically correct, but it is unfortunate to see the continued use of this talking point that would mislead any non-transportation wonk reader. "MDOT successfully issued $750 million in GARVEE bonds on the Intercounty Connector, which have all been repaid, and MDOT currently has no outstanding GARVEE bonds." GARVEE is a form of financing that issues bonds backed by the formula funding Maryland gets from the federal government. It is a useful tool, but MDOT is now advancing GARVEE for an important light rail vehicle safety project so this information is, at best, outdated. On to some broader points. This application does not tell us if the state will pursue a Public Private Partnership or not. And it does not update the transit commitments made to the Montgomery County government previously. It also does not tell us how Maryland can meet its contribution given recent transportation funding challenges. We made tough decisions to climb out of a hole over the past two years, but that does not seem like adequate revenue to support this type of mega project. Especially given our state of good repair needs on existing roadways--including the American Legion Bridge as it is today, without more lanes--and transit systems. ----- There are a series of upcoming Sunday closures at the Medical Center Metro station bus loop. This is to accommodate Metro work to replace transformers, as well as AC and DC gears inside the Traction Power Substation.  POLITICAL NEWS Our area is extremely active nationally and an area fundraiser is being held on Tuesday, September 16th at 5:30pm in support of Janelle Stelson, a Democratic candidate for the United States House of Representatives in Pennsylvania's 10th district. You can learn more here.  COMMUNITY NEWS
The Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center is polling residents about a possible recreation center in downtown Bethesda. Take the survey here. ----- And speaking of surveys, Montgomery County Planning is seeking further input on their Friendship Heights Sector Plan. Take the survey here. ----- The Washington Post wrote an uplifting story about District 16 resident and BCC Fire and Rescue Squad volunteer Ed Levien. Read it here. ----- Washington Jewish Week ran a profile of Dr. Stephen Rockower, who has long been active in our state's medical society. ----- Congratulations to Jeffrey Hains on his re-appointment to the Montgomery County Preservation Commission. |
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October 2025
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