The Baltimore City Council last night approved Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s $2.4-billion operating budget. The Council also gave preliminary approval to the city’s stormwater fee plan, but postponed a vote on a bill that would ban the use of polystyrene foam cups and containers. Republican former Secret Service agent Dan Bongino will formally enter the 6th District Congressional race today. GOP Congressman Paul Ryan will address the MD Republican Party’s largest fundraiser on Thursday. Plus, our series on Baltimore’s vacant properties, Senator Ben Cardin on the VA backlog, Frederick County’s streams, beach closings in Anne Arundel, and more.
Baltimore’s Budget: The Baltimore City Council last night approved Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake’s $2.4-billion dollar operating budget, which she calls a fiscal road map towards attracting more families to the city. WYPR’s Kenneth Burns has more.
Baltimore Stormwater Fees: The Baltimore City Council has also given preliminary approval to the city’s plan for stormwater fees. Under the fee schedule, most property owners will pay between 40 and 120 dollars a year. The Baltimore Sun notesthat the stormwater fees have been capped at 20 percent of property taxes for both businesses and residences… and religious institutions will pay 83 percent less than originally proposed.
Proposed Foam Ban: The Council did NOT vote yesterday on a bill that would ban the use of polystyrene foam cups and containers at city restaurants, as it had been expected to do. The Baltimore Sun reports that the scheduled vote was postponed, after several council members suddenly withdrew their support.
Vacant Opportunities: Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is looking to bring in the bulldozers to remove thousands of the city’s vacant houses – an initiative with implications for her 2014 budget. Housing officials say many of the properties they are looking to demolish are in poor shape and are functionally obsolete.In the second part of our series “Vacant Opportunities,”WYPR’s Kenneth Burns talks to one woman who’s waiting for the city to demolish an entire block – her home included.
Paul Ryan To Address MD GOP Fundraiser: the Maryland Republican Party has announced that Representative Paul Ryan will be speaking at their biggest fundraiser of the year. Ryan will be coming to Baltimore on Thursday for the state GOP’s annual “Red White and Blue” dinner; Ryan was the GOP’s Vice Presidential nominee last year, and the Baltimore Sun notesthat he’s considered a leading candidate for the Republican Presidential nomination in 2016.
Bongino To Enter 6th District Race: A former Secret Service agent who ran unsuccessfully for Maryland's Senate seat last year is planning to officially get into next year’s race for the state's 6th Congressional District. Republican Daniel Bongino's website says a formal announcement will be made at noon at the American Legion Hall in Frederick; marylandreporter.com has more.
Cardin On VA Backlog: Senator Ben Cardin says progress is being made on reducing the disability claims backlog at the Baltimore Veterans Affairs office. Cardin says he was told the February backlog of more than 17-thousand cases that were more than 125 days old had been reduced to eleven-thousand by June.
Frederick County Streams: Many of Frederick County’s streams are in poor health, according to a major water quality report released yesterday. The study is the first of its kind, and examines water pollution, erosion, and the amount of food and shelter available for stream life. The Frederick News Post saysthat streams appear to be healthier in the northern and western parts of the county, but are more damaged in agricultural and urban areas.
United Way Giving: Maryland, federal, state and local government workers gave more than 11 million dollars to the United Way during recent fundraising campaigns. The United Way tells the Baltimore Sunthat the money came in as part of payroll deductions during the Combined Federal Campaign, the Maryland Charity Campaign, and the Combined Charity Campaign. Earlier this month, a study by the Motley Fool LLC found that Maryland is the most generous state in the nation when it comes to charitable giving.
Naval Academy Sexual Assault Charges: Three members of the U.S. Naval Academy football team are facing sexual assault charges. The Capital Gazette reportsthat the Naval Academy superintendent has decided to bring charges against the three players for the alleged rape of a female midshipman last year.
AA Beach Closings: 3 beaches in Anne Arundel County have been closed – after registering high bacteria readings for two weeks in a row. Anne Arundel's Health Department says that Beverly Beach on the Chesapeake is closed, so is the Londontown at Arundel beach on the South River, and the Upper Magothy Beach on the Magothy River. Officials tell the Baltimore Sunthat they’re not sure what caused the high bacteria readings… but say anything from water temperature to rainfall could be to blame.
Thursday Tornadoes: The National Weather Service is confirming that two tornadoes touched down in Maryland during storms last Thursday. Officials tell the Baltimore Sunthat both tornadoes were the weakest rating of EF-zero, and touched down in Montgomery and St. Mary's counties.
Baltimore Baseball: the Orioles fell 5 to 1 to the Detroit Tigers yesterday; the two teams play again tonight.