It’s not unusual to be asked if I would support an amendment broadening the scope of my bill. It happened at the hearing on my bill dealing with campaign committees for referendum and ballot issues campaigns. House Bill 247 would require these committees to disclose on the Internet within 24 hours any contribution received during …more >

There are some things you can’t find on Google. But with a long memory and good staff, you can get what you want. Republican legislators have been invited to discuss their proposed budget cuts at a joint meeting of the House and Senate fiscal committees. “This is a first,” a budget staffer told the Sun …more >

In addition to quoting Supreme Court Justice Stevens on the harmful effect of unlimited corporate money in political campaigns, I can now cite Senator Charles Schumer and Congressman Chris Van Hollen. They introduced legislation yesterday to restrict such spending at the federal level. So I asked our bill drafter if their proposals had any provisions …more >

It was a very quiet walk to work this morning. The main streets of Annapolis were plowed but with hardly any cars on them. At a chance meeting in the committee offices, a lobbyist assured me that the votes were there for a favorable report on a bill we had heard. “But first you have …more >

My chairman always sleeps at home. So he didn’t make it back through the snow to Annapolis for this morning’s floor session. Our committee had two bills to be considered on the House floor. As I was leaving my office to head to the State House, I remembered that and brought my laptop with me. …more >

“A stronger deterrent is needed for those homeowners who maliciously damage their own property during or after a foreclosure proceeding,” read the statement of the Maryland Association of Realtors in support of legislation that would make such conduct a criminal misdemeanor. “Human trafficking is a form of modern day slavery,” declared the written testimony of …more >

When you have seven bill hearings scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, being snowbound for two days helps you get your testimony finished ahead of time. Normally, I’m fine tuning my written statement the morning of the hearing. After perfecting my opening sentence (“Hit them in the forehead with a 2×4,” I tell my students.), I …more >

It’s good to have the subcommittee chair as your co-sponsor. Twice this morning, I asked the relevant subcommittee chair to sign on to one of my bills. Both times, they did – with enthusiasm. One would allow a homeless youth to obtain mental health treatment without parental consent. The other would require the Public Service …more >

We had our first committee voting session of the Virtual Sunshine era. The Speaker has decided that committee votes will now be available online. So my colleagues were skittish. If we have a dozen bills on a controversial subject, only one will receive a favorable report, a delegate correctly noted, and people will now know …more >

“You can’t just say ‘no’ all the time,” I heatedly responded. After the Governor’s State of the State speech, a radio reporter told me that the Republican response was “All the Governor talked about was government, government, government – despite the message sent by the voters in New Jersey, Virginia and Massachusetts.” “Government has a …more >