Gov. Hogan's gauzy plans for a free Interstate upgrade courtesy of the slippery public-private partnership dodge has significant big risks for Maryland taxpayers written right into the contract documents, as transit activist Benjamin Ross outlines here in a Maryland Matters opinion article. All this free stuff may have a high price after all, and the Board of Public Works should definitely turn this scam down when it comes up next week.

If we think of incarceration as a solution to problems of criminal justice, we need to think about the whole picture, which amounts to a series of traps experienced by those who have "paid their debt to society." As we know, employers can still screen out criminal records with one check-box on the application -- and Gov. Hogan just last week vetoed a bill that would ban that practice. PM activist Dave Bazell gives a close-up picture of all the ways that a "debt to society" is very, very hard to completely satisfy, and how it affects poor and working families.

See also the Job Opportunities Task Force's detailed study of how Maryland carries out the "Criminalization of Poverty."

Summer begins but our issues are no less urgent. Read about Gov. Larry's trickle of vetoes, a petition to stop private police forces, and news of our activities and those of our progressive allies.

Whether you attended the People’s Wave (April 28-30), watched some or all on livestream or learned about it after the fact, it set a substantive agenda for progressive political action in the 2020 election cycle and beyond. And it's all at your fingertips right here.

Summer begins this coming weekend (time for outside activism and agitation!) and the recent legislative Session fades into memory – but our issues are still on the front burner. Get the picture here in the Memo.

We’ve come too far to let payday loan sharks win now. We need YOU to beat back Trump’s attack on rules to #StopTheDebtTrap.

Action items for the week: Push back against Trump-style attacks on working families; oppose predatory payday lending <> Act now to join our MOVEMENT POLITICS Training on Saturday, May 18 in Baltimore; learn how to build power in electoral politics from the ground up.

The Trump wrecking ball may hit vital consumer financial protections unless we tell them no. Comments on a rollback of regulations on payday lending must be made within five days. PM makes it easy here; read on.

The Prince George's Council joins MoCo's executive in urging a go-slow approach to the environmental and social cost of Hogan's galloping road show. Activists see the "public-private partnership" as a boondoggle for GOP-connected consultants that will eventually have to be bailed out by state taxpayers. A Maryland Matters article has details.

Prince George's County teachers observe teacher "Un-Appreciation Day" today with a protest against the cascade of local, state and national obstacles to equity, teacher retention and restorative programs in school systems in historically African-American communities. And veteran Prince George's teacher and union activist Yvonne N. Baicich reminds us of the everyday challenges in the classroom, where all these trends converge.