Maryland House Democrats
Putting Marylanders First
Accomplishments
The House Democratic Caucus has worked this term to protect the priorities that keep Maryland strong: the nation’s best education system, a robust system of universities and community colleges, and stronger laws to keep our families safe.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Maryland ranks first in the nation for our K-12 education system.
• Maryland has moved from 6th most expensive to 17th in the nation for higher education tuition, as a result of four consecutive years of a tuition freeze, started by the legislature in 2006.
• Maryland is now 16th in the nation for providing healthcare coverage to adults, down from 44th in the nation in 2007.
• Maryland remains one of only seven states in the country to retain the coveted triple-A bond rating, even through this global recession. Fitch Ratings highlighted that Maryland has “financial operations [that] are conservative”.
• In its Best States for Business rankings, Forbes magazine noted that Maryland is one of only a handful of States which actually saw growth in the last year – and it ranked our workforce and growth potential in the top ten among States
PUBLIC SAFETY
• Passed Jessica’s Law, eliminating parole for the most violent child sexual predators. Now, they face a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in state prison
• Passed the Maryland Gang Prosecution Act, which subjects a gang member to up to 20 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $100,000
• Require the collection of DNA samples from people who are charged with crimes of violence, such as murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, or felony burglary, to give police officers and prosecutors the tools they need to solve crimes while protecting the privacy of citizens not charged with a crime. This law has eliminated a backlog of 24,000 unanalyzed DNA samples and lead to 192 arrests.
• Working with Governor O’Malley, we took an important step to protect victims of domestic violence from their abusers by passing a law that requires judges to take firearms from those who have final protective orders issued against them. Another law will give judges discretion to remove firearms when issuing a temporary protective order in which there is the threat of violence.
• Created the House Emergency Medical Services System Workgroup, which led to the State budgeting $52 million to fund three new Medevac helicopters to replace the State’s aging fleet, while making changes to the medical protocols to ensure that we continue to have a nationally-renowned trauma system in Maryland
• Strengthened drunk driving laws, including imposing a mandatory one year license suspension for a person convicted of drunk driving more than once in five years.
EDUCATION
• Maryland ranks #1 in the nation for the second year in a row, by Education Week magazine. This coming year, we will again invest over $5.5 billion each year in K – 12 education.
• After a 40% increase during the prior administration, Maryland has had a tuition freeze in place for four years, in order to help ensure access to an affordable college education for every Maryland student. Maryland now ranks 17th, and better than average compared to our competitor States. Recently, considering tuition alone, Maryland fell below the national average, according to the College Board.
• Four Maryland public universities ranked in the Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine’s 100 Best Values in Public Colleges (UMCP, St. Mary’s College and Salisbury and Towson Universities)
• Over four years, the Governor and legislature have invested $1.25B in school construction across the State, the highest amount ever invested in a four year term, to provide state-of-the-art, modern classrooms for our students.
ENVIRONMENT
• Joined 11 other states in passing “Clean Cars” legislation, requiring every new car sold in Maryland to be more fuel-efficient, which will reduce carbon dioxide and other vehicle emissions linked to air pollution. This builds on our passage of the Healthy Air Act in 2006, which addresses air pollution from coal-fired power plants. With “clean cars,” we will further reduce smog and other toxic compounds in the air that contribute to cancer, asthma, and other debilitating diseases in Maryland.
• Expanded oyster restoration programs at the University of Maryland College of Environmental Sciences to continue the construction of oyster habitats and establishing Aquaculture Enterprise Zones, allowing prospective shellfish growers to lease portions of the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Coastal Bays
• The Clean Indoor Air Act, which passed the House with bi-partisan support, prohibits in-door smoking in bars and restaurants, with no exceptions for private clubs
• Tightened the procedures for zoning variances, enhanced penalties for developers who violate the State’s Critical Areas law, constructing too close to the Chesapeake Bay.
• Dedicated $149 million for nutrient removal to reduce the amount of nitrogen pollution entering the Bay and created the Chesapeake Bay 2010 Trust Fund to expedite pollution reduction in the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays and Patuxent River, promoting a cleaner and healthier environment for all Marylanders and rebuilding our fisheries and shellfish habitats
• Passed legislation requiring the State to adopt a plan to reduce 2006 greenhouse gas emissions levels by 25% by the year 2020, while ensuring that there is no significant job loss in the manufacturing industry, as well as produce net new jobs across the State
• Broadened environmental standing rights passed to give citizens a voice in protecting the environment around them. The legislation allows associations to seek judicial review of environmental permit decisions across the State and development decisions close to the waterfront, while at the same time streamlining the administrative appeal process. Without the participation of the public, effective enforcement of our environmental laws will be nearly impossible.
HEALTH CARE
• Entered into an innovative public-private partnership with Carefirst that expands prescription drug coverage to 30,000 Maryland seniors caught in the donut hole
• Passed legislation to enroll the 90,000 eligible uninsured children in our State into the Medicaid health care program
• Expanded healthcare to 50,000 adults in working families at a time when many states in the country are taking people off of their health care rolls
