Archive for the 'Baltimore County' Category
A press release from Baltimore/Harford Del. Pat McDonough (R-Dist. 7) says that according to a Patrick Gonzalez Poll completed over the weekend, McDonough has the potential to conduct a strong race for Baltimore County Executive.
The press release adds that the poll indicated that the delegate’s name recognition was 44% with 20% favorable and 6% unfavorable. In a match-up with the two leading Democrat contenders, McDonough received 26% with Councilman Kevin Kamenetz (D-Dist. 2) receiving 32% with 42% undecided. Councilman Joseph Bartenfelder (D-Dist. 6) received 32% with McDonough receiving 27% and 41% undecided.
McDonough was thinking about running for governor, but said that he was no longer doing so speaking with reporters at the state house during opening day exercises, citing that he believes that former Governor Robert Ehrlich (R) was going to re-eneter the race. As I tweeted last week from the state house, McDonough says that the signs that Ehrlich is going to enter the race are around him.
Believe it or not, four of the seven Baltimore County Council members said that they would not approve giving themselves raises suggested by an advisory panel. It should also be noted that two of the council members (Chairman Joseph Bartenfelder D-Dist. 6 and Kevin Kamentez D-Dist. 2) are also considering a run for County Executive next week.
More from The Baltimore Sun.
WBAL (1090AM) is also reporting that the advisory board that recommended the raises violated the open meetings act.
Whoever succeeds Baltimore County Executive Jim Smith (D) and the current county council, will be paid more.
The Arbutus Times via explorebaltimorecounty.com reports that the Baltimore County Personnel and Salary Board has recommended that the next county council and county executive receive an eight percent raise.
And now an addition to Maryland Politics Today’s dishonor roll known and The E-List. This one comes with several disclaimers and several prefaces. For one, last weeks postings were done from Washington, DC and not the new Burns Media Centre in Baltimore, hence why the picture of Baltimore City Councilwoman Helen Holton was from the MarylandPT Graphic Series 1.0 from the archive. Furthermore, I have not been online from my home for two weeks until earlier today when all was finally right with the world. At this point, I am posting this because despite the fact that my bill was greatly reduced and I have all of my services working now, it’s about the principle of the situation where communication and patience is key. In any event, here is an addition to The E-List that I am sure will receive bi-partisan support, especially for residents of Baltimore County.
The Comcast Cable franchise in Baltimore County.
OK, my initial installation on July 21 went good, except that my internet signal was slow. What ensued there after, I would not wish on anyone, including the liberal blowhards that like to use me as their dart board. I’m sure they will go on board as well.
Continue reading ‘The E-List: Comcast Cable of Baltimore County’
Governor Martin O’Malley (D) has announced which plans would be submitted to the federal government for money for two mass transit projects in Baltimore and the Capital Region.
The Red Line in Baltimore will have limited tunneling from Western Baltimore County, and end at the Bayview Medical Center. Most of the tunneling will take place in downtown Baltimore between Poppleton and Canton. This plan was endorsed by Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon (D), Baltimore County Executive Jim Smith (D) and the Greater Baltimore Committee.
The Baltimore Sun says that neighborhood activists were not happy about the Governor’s choice, but O’Malley, while making the announcement from the West Baltimore MARC station, assured them that this was not going to be their grandfather’s light rail system. If approved, it will be at least 2013 before work can begin. I should also note that the Baltimore Sun’s editorial board has not missed a beat since I moved as far as walking in lock step with the governor’s decision.
Meantime in Prince George’s County, where the Governor announced a light rail plan for the Purple Line, a 16-mile project to run between New Carrollton and Bethesda. The governor also gave the same selling points about light rail in New Carrollton, according to The Washington Post.
There is one draw back regarding the Purple Line plan endorsed by the Governor…it runs through the main drag at the University of Maryland College Park. Officials with UMCP tell The Gazette that they are still debating if that will even happen, with college officials preferring that the purple line run through the south part of campus. They are concerned that a purple line that runs along Campus Drive would be dangerous for pedestrians and disturb sensitive research equipment.
Greetings from our new home base in Baltimore. Maryland Politics Today last week moved from Laurel, Prince George’s County, where it has been in operation since our inception in 2006. Not only am I preparing for this blog’s fourth year of operation, but the next election coming in a few months. More on Free Vote 2010 as time ticks away. Now to the news, which begins in our new backyard…
Baltimore County Councilman Kenneth Oliver (D-4th) has pleaded guilty to improper use of campaign funds when he ran for his first term in 2002.
WBAL-TV (Channel 11) says that Oliver will be paying a $2,500 fine and must serve 50 hours of looking over the shoulders of accountants who know what they are doing when it comes to managing campaign funds. Oliver, who is the first Black councilman in Baltimore County, will get to keep his seat because his actions had nothing to do with his duties in office.
Oliver was originally indicted in January.
We also know about someone else’s plans. Baltimore County Executive Jim Smith (D) has ruled out running for comptroller against Peter Franchot (D).
In a statement released yesterday, Smith called it a tough decision after thinking about it for a long time, and he has decided that being Comptroller is not something that he wants to aspire to. “I have never pursued any elected office because it was expedient. I always sought the opportunity to serve because I thought I could make a real difference — as a councilman, a judge, and currently as County Executive. I did not feel that passion when considering a run for Comptroller.”
Smith was heavily favored to take on Franchot…who himself probably felt the same thing as he made a cople of public appearances in Baltimore County while back advocating for more schools to be built in the county.
This morning, Baltimore County Executive James Smith (D) address his county’s delegaton to the general assembly to lay out their priorities. School construction is topping the list, especially since Baltimore County has students attending classes in buildings that are 50+ years old, giving them tge second oldest school building stock in the state. The county will urge the state to keep it’s $325 million committment to public school construction for 2010. They requested $84.5 million for construction and renovation.
Public safety is also a big concern of the county. They are going to seek legislation to require pawnshops to report aquistions electronically to county police. They are also pushing for scrap and prescious metal dealers to report transactions to police as well in response to a rise in scrap and presceious metal thefts. The county will also seek permission to conduct criminal background checks on all potential county employees.
Baltimore County Councilman Kenneth Oliver (D-4th) was indicted by a grand jury on charged that he misused campaign funds. Felony theft is the case they are giving him and he could face up to 15 years in prison and up to $25,000 in fines.
WBAL-TV (Channel 11) says that according to the indictment, Oliver calimed responsibility in a letter he wrote to the state Board of Elections in February for writing the two checks for his personal use. The indictment, according to the MD Daily Record, also says that Oliver “also wrote smaller checks to himself from his campaign fund — ostensibly as reimbursement for expenses including a fish fry and a trip to the Maryland Association of Counties — without supplying receipts or other documentation to show that the expenses were campaign-related.”
Oliver was first elected to the Baltimore County Council in 2002, the first African-American elected to the body representing the 4th district, which covers Randallstown, Reisterstown, Woodlawn and Lochern. He has spent most of his professional career in the financing industry.
State Budget Chief T. Eloise Foster is recommedning to Governor Martin O’Malley that education should be cut by $38 million. She is also recommending that the geographical cost of education index fund gets hacked by 50 percent.
The Baltimore Sun reporting that the recommendations were sent to O’Malley (D) last week and that a decision is expected as early as next week. Among those who would get touched by the cuts the hardest is Prince George’s County who had a contigency fund that happened to be the exact amount of the cut, $11.8 million. Montgomery County would lose $9.2 million.
Rounding out the top three are Baltimore City ($6.5 million), Anne Arundel County ($2.6 million) and Baltimore County ($1.6 million).
Forgive me if I am a bit behind, but a historic election happened to occur during one of my busiest weeks of a year. In any event, now we are going to look how the ballot questions that needed to be answered in eight local governments fared. Remember. we are looking at issues here and not bond questions.
Anne Arundel County (100% reporting)
Question A would have been favorable to the county council in that if the county executive did not sign a bill into law after ten days, the bill would automatically go into effect. This question failed by a tight margin 52 percent to 48 percent.
Question B would allow the county council to nominate for appointment by the county executive three of the seven members of the ethics commission. This question passed 67 percent to 33 percent.
Baltimore City (as of Nov. 6)
Question A would create the Department of General Services which would take some work off of the hands of the Department of Public Works.  It would also require “obstructions in the public street to the work of the Department of Transportation or the Department of General Services must be removed upon notice from those Departments.â€Â This question passed 139,526 votes to 30,162.
Baltimore County (99% reporting)
Question A would do away with the rule barring county council members from working for the state at the same time. Baltimore County residents did not want this rule to be done away, it has failed 54 percent to 46 percent.
Garrett County (100% reporting)
Question A would permit certain alcoholic beverages to be sold Sunday Afternoons and evenings between 1:00-10:00pm in the districts which approved the measure. You will be able to buy some sauce on Sunday Afternoons in Swanton, Sang Run, East Oakland, Finzel and Mountain Lake Park.
Montgomery County (100% reporting)
Question A would repeal three sections of the county charter regarding the use of county funds to operate a landfill or burying or trenching sewage sludge in residential zones, in addition to telephone service offered by the C&P Telephone Company. 64 percent were for the repeal, 36 percent were against it.
Question B would require a unanimous vote of the county council, rather than a super majority (7-2) to levy a property tax that would exceed the annual limit. This question BARELY passed 50.09 percent to 49.91percent.
Prince George’s County (100% reporting)
The infamous Question F would have raised the telephone taxes in the county from eight percent to 11 percent. This question failed 71 percent to 29 percent.
Question G would clarify the scheduling and notice period of county legislation by the county council clerk from five to ten days. This question passed 88 percent to 12 percent.
Talbot County (100% reporting)
Question A would eliminate the county council from the picture in regards to filling a vacancy on their roster after 30 days and shift would then shift appointment powers to the Governor. If the governor fails to act within 30 days from when his clock starts, the vacancy would be filled through a special election. If the vacancy occurs more than 60 days before the presidential primary election, any appointment made to fill the vacancy would on be good through the general presidential election after which a special election would be held. This question passed 59 percent to 41 percent.
Question B would have established a commission to recommend a pay raise amount for the next county council. The question failed 55 percent to 45 percent.
Wicomico County (100% reporting)
Question A would have allowed the county to refund outstanding bonds, certificates of indebtedness, notes and other obligations in accordance with state law. The question was overwhelmingly approved 82 percent to 18 percent.
Question B asked to increase the term for general obligation bonds, certificates of indebtedness, notes and other obligations which may be issued from 25 to 30 years and to clarify certain terms for bond anticipation notes. This question was approved convincingly 71 percent to 29 percent.
One thing is for certain in the 1st Congressional District, whoever gets elected, there will have to be a special election held to fill the seat of either Baltimore/Harford Senator Andy Harris (R-Dist. 7) or Queen Anne’s County State’s Attorney Frank Kratovil (D).
Al Redmer Jr. is making his intentions known in regards to filling Harris’ seat should he be elected. Redmer is currently president of Landmark Insurance and Financial Group Inc. He is former member of the House of Delegates, serving for 13 years, including a tour as minority leader before Governor Robert Ehrlich (R) appointed him Maryland Insurance Commissioner in 2003. He serves as a Board Member for the Essex-Middle River-White Marsh Chamber of Commerce and is a Past President of the Perry Hall Improvement Association.
He recently held a breakfast fundraiser which brought $25,000 to his campaign bank account.
