|
With the 2026 legislative session now complete, my newsletter is back to its monthly format. But there is still a lot to report. Let's start with the politics. The 2026 primary election is on June 23rd (early voting is June 11th to June 18th. If you are interested in a Sara Love/Marc Korman lawn sign or in volunteering at early voting or on election day, please just click reply to this email and let me know. I am seeking another term as one of your state delegates because I think this is the time for elected officials to be pushy. What I mean by that is we need to push back against what a hostile president is doing. That includes giving our state Attorney General the resources to fight for our interests in court, passing legislation to ensure that immigrant Marylanders--and anyone who could be viewed as an immigrant Marylander--are treated fairly, and continuing to re-position our private sector economy so we can be less reliant on federal jobs. We also need to push forward on issues Washington, D.C. has lost interest in, like effective gun safety laws and tackling environmental challenges, including climate change. We must also continue to push progress on our own issues, such as our transportation infrastructure investments (including Metro) and the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, which is the state's contribution to our public schools. I hope I can earn your support for another term as delegate. TOWN HALL The District 16 Delegation is holding a post-legislative town hall on Tuesday, May 19th at 6:30pm at the Connie Morella Library in Bethesda. RSVP here: https://tinyurl.com/D16townhall  LEGISLATIVE UPDATE Each year, the non-partisan Department of Legislative Services assembles a comprehensive summary of the General Assembly’s legislative session work. Here is the 2026 90 Day Report. Another significant resource for the legislature's work this year is the Joint Chairs Report (JCR) of the state budget, which not only summarizes all of the budget actions taken by the Maryland General Assembly in consideration of the Governor's budget request, but it also represents one of our most important tools to provide oversight of the executive branch. This year's JCR includes required reporting I worked on related to Potomac Interceptor clean-up; Purple Line progress; bike lane impacts on Old Georgetown Road; implementation of a "bottle bill" in Maryland; and curbside management. But there are many more topics covered in the JCR that you can browse through below. JCR Volume 1 JCR Volume 2 ----- With the legislative process complete, bills are now before the Governor to sign, veto, or allow to become law without his signature. You can see what he is signing here. Here are the bills that I was the primary sponsor of. Franchise Reform Act (HB 730): The bill is designed to help businesses using the franchise model operate more efficiently in the state of Maryland. You can read a detailed write-up here. The Governor has announced that he will sign the bill Large Buildings for Tomorrow Act (HB 870): The legislation ensures the Maryland Department of Environment is helping developers of large buildings comply with Maryland's environmental laws. The Governor has announced that he will sign the bill. Maryland Transit Administration Reform Act (HB 1081): The bill strengthens and improves our statewide transit agency, including setting up a commuter services advisory board that can support MARC commuter rail service in Montgomery County. The Governor has stated that he will sign the bill. Village of Drummond Reforms (HB 1623): This bill--which the Governor has signed into law--reforms the Village of Drummond charter, at the village's request.  ----- I am also proud of the work I do as chair of the Environment & Transportation Committee. Some of this year's highlights are below.  SCHOLARSHIP In Maryland, state legislators are able to offer legislative scholarships for those seeking higher education in Maryland or outside of Maryland for unique majors only. Learn more here.  POTOMAC INTERCEPTOR NEWS The Maryland Department of the Environment and DC Water will be presenting findings on recent testing on May 18th at 7pm at the Glen Echo Town Hall. As a reminder, my office sends more detailed Potomac Interceptor-specific updates throughout the week. If you would like to be added to those updates, please just reply to this message. COMMUNITY NEWS The Red Line stations of Grosvenor-Strathmore, Medical Center, Bethesda, and Friendship Heights will be closed from July 6 to September 6 with no trains running there. This is because of tie-in work at the Bethesda station for the Purple Line and Metro is leveraging the opportunity to do other infrastructure work on the western leg of the Red Line. Be prepared for this significant disruption and learn more here. ----- My family and I use Compost Crew and when we started, I was really surprised the volume of compostable waste we had (must be too many leftovers). So I love to see the county expanding free drop-off opportunities for food scraps. The Bethesda Farmer’s Market already has a site and now, through November, North Bethesda will too.  ----- Congratulations to several District 16 residents named to the Montgomery County Human Rights Commission: Dia Costello; Staci Campbell; Ina Farka; and Steven Semler. And congratulations to Armando DelToro, a new member of the County's Board of Social Services. ----- The NIH Community Chorus continues its season on Saturday, May 23rd at 4pm. Learn more here. ENDORSEMENT NEWS I am proud to have a broad set of endorsements for my re-election campaign. Since my last update, here is who has endorsed my campaign.        Comments are closed.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
April 2026
Categories |
RSS Feed