The back-and-forth contest between a Maryland legal and social landscape influenced by religion and one free of religious aspects gets renewed in the Assembly each session, with mostly limited bills submitted on both sides. Mathew Goldstein offers a look at the state of play this year. Continue reading

Advocates for significant reform of police accountability measures in Maryland -- in the wake of notable instance of police misconduct -- packed a hearing in Annapolis as Assembly members fashioned a package for change. Continue reading

Trekking to Annapolis to lobby your legislators face to face is a somewhat scripted ritual, yes. But it often has an effect, and has other compensations. Continue reading

Bloggers for Progressive Maryland have covered the range of local, state and national issues important to PM activists in 42 posts since last June. Here's an index and summary of the posts so you can catch up. Continue reading

A mega-grocery company's backsliding after getting public benefits brought unity between workers, the community and local officials that forged a favorable outcome in a struggle with the hedge-fund mentality. Continue reading

Montgomery County's Living Wage law raised wages for employees of county contractors -- but some slick operators were cheating their employees without penalty. The County Council passed a strong enforcement package Feb. 2 to prevent this abuse. Continue reading

Progressive Maryland and allied activist groups cheered Wednesday's introduction of bills in both Assembly chambers requiring employers statewide to offer paid sick leave to many of the 700,000 Maryland workers who now have to choose between work and a sick child. Continue reading

Citizens returning from incarceration are still locked out from many of the jobs that give them a path to a full life. Proactive public policy is needed to make this path easier for more returning citizens, Kurt Stand shows. Continue reading

The Maryland General Assembly formally gets under way today (Wednesday, Jan. 13) and progressive bills and policies -- in which Progressive Maryland has a big stake -- are on the line. Here's a look at the contests ahead. Continue reading

Following up on an earlier blog post about the threat that Equality MD, an important human rights organization, might have to close its doors, Matthew Snider provides an update and better news. Continue reading