An article in The Capital-Gazette shares a status report on several bills in the General Assembly. A couple of these pieces of legislation are of interest to county governments, including transportation, justice reinvestment, and paid sick leave.
From the The Capital-Gazette,
- Transportation: The Maryland Open Transportation Investment Decision Act made headlines twice last week — first for passing the Senate and then for being vetoed by Hogan just a day later. The measure, which would require the state’s transportation department to devise a scoring system for projects vying for funding, has been the source of a major partisan dispute this session. . .
- Justice reinvestment: Wide-ranging legislation to reform the state’s criminal justice system has passed the Senate and will be taken up for a final vote in the House this week. Gov. Larry Hogan has expressed support for ideas in the bipartisan measure. The legislation aims to channel drug offenders toward treatment rather than jail time and expand the range of offenses that can be expunged from criminal records, among other changes. The House and Senate versions include some significant differences that will need to be reconciled.
- Paid sick leave: An effort to require that employers offer paid sick leave is expected to be taken up for a final vote this week. The legislation, which would mandate paid sick leave to be offered at businesses with 15 or more employees, won preliminary approval in the House on Friday.
For information on MACo’s positions on these issues, see the following links to our testimony.
- MACo opposed the The Maryland Open Transportation Investment Decision Act,
- MACo supported the Justice Reinvestment Act with amendments, and
- MACo opposed paid sick leave legislation.
For more information on high-profile issues, see Session status report: As final week begins, where do high-profile issues stand? from The Capital-Gazette.
