News You Can Use: Maryland faces budget problems, road money cuts in 2024 Assembly session
A budget shortfall requires early action to keep the cuts as close to painless as possible. Local governments don't find it painless because many budget cuts are slated for the transportation sector, meaning local roads may not get the upkeep money they are used to. Many early protests are coming from local jurisdictions already worried about the possible increasing costs on the education side of the ledger. Plus, fish with and without PFAS, juvenile justice and mental health and a free speech controversy with roots in the conflict in Gaza. It's all News You Can Use, happy or otherwise, curated for your Monday.
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Read moreProgressive Maryland Weekly Memo for Monday, December 4, 2023
As December unfolds, we're excited about the opportunity to close out the year on a strong note. Your dedication has been the driving force behind our successes this year and as we embark on the final stretch of 2023, we invite you to fortify our ranks and become a member of Progressive Maryland.
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Membership with us means powering community-centered organizing, supporting crucial issue campaigns, forming connections with fellow community members, and contributing to building a more inclusive, just, and sustainable Maryland.
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Your membership matters beyond symbolism—it directly impacts our economic and political independence. By forgoing corporate donors, we remain flexible, nimble, and capable of taking bold risks in our pursuit of transformative politics in Maryland. As a member-driven organization, we can champion the causes that matter most to our communities.
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Read moreTransportation fund needs transfusion or surgery, ending contraceptive deserts and more, plus states and fed news you can use
Oh yes, and the continuing saga of the FBI building. Is it the whirlpool baths at Quantico? Surely Maryland can match them. Plus, transportation money woes, some student tests up a bit; unintended pregnancies due to lack of contraceptive access, and the story from around the states that can provide ideas for Marylanders (and headaches for the Assembly members). And then there's COP 28. It's all here in News You Can Use for this week.
Read moreWhere have all the Democrats gone -- and where is the party at, exactly?
Josh Kurtz, a founding editor of Maryland Matters and charter member of the Deans' Club of Maryland political observers, here munches on the different aspects of the state and national Democratic Party, clearly still in charge of Maryland's Blue-state blueness. But they are feeling blue, and divided in their blues-ness, for reasons outlined in expert analytical books separated by two-plus decades. Progressives are the energy of today's Dems, but can they co-exist with the big-money donors that Bill Clinton and Barack Obama brought into the party? This is a both entertaining and sobering overview by a longtime political reporter.
Read moreProgressive Maryland Weekly Memo for Monday, November 27, 2023
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In touch with gratitude this week, we're reflecting on the incredible journey we've shared with you. Your support, whether as a member, volunteer, supporter, or leader, has been the driving force behind Progressive Maryland's achievements.  With this momentum, we're gearing up for another impactful year—planning our advocacy work for the upcoming legislative session, mapping out our power-building efforts, talking to allies, and getting ready for events like our annual membership meeting. Your continued support is crucial as it allows us to amplify our achievements and set the stage for positive change.  On tomorrow’s international day of giving, nonprofits rely on their network to band together and join the movement to ensure vital community operations can thrive. Your support, no matter the amount, empowers us to bring higher pay to tipped workers, make health insurance claims easier, ensure cleaner air for all, and create opportunities for those returning from incarceration.  Whether through a donation or volunteering for our task forces and issue campaigns, you make a tangible difference. Thank you for being an integral part of making Maryland better. May you be inspired today and tomorrow’s #GivingTuesday to make a contribution to your favorite nonprofit. To express our gratitude, donors contributing $50 or more will receive a special surprise gift this year! |
Read on to discover the significant strides our task forces and issue campaigns are making, and check out our news and blog space. Â |
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Here’s what’s in today’s memo:
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Read moreTheeey're back: College squabbles about degree programs, state unemployment too low (?!), filling empty seats and more: News You Can Use
Some things seem like they are never really settled. With great effort, the Assembly passes Anton's Law, providing a window of transparency into police internal records. It's challenged in court. Transport efficiency advocates fight Larry Hogan's plan for Beltway toll lanes to a draw; the Moore admin brings it back. Despite good-government efforts to challenge the power of county Central Committees in filling empty legislative seats, they are still being filled that way. Now new legislation is proposed. All this is a good reason to let News You Can Use keep an eye on this random stuff for you, one-stop shopping every Monday for outrages and good ideas alike.
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Read moreMaking gratitude matter
This Native American Heritage Month, we are acknowledging the ongoing effects of settler colonialism. We understand our responsibility as settlers and recognize the displacement, genocide, and past and present violence against Indigenous people on whose ancestral lands the present-day United States, including Maryland, stands. Progressive Maryland is committed to fostering a more just and equitable future for all Marylanders. All means all.
Read moreProgressive Maryland Weekly Memo for Monday, November 20, 2023
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As we near the end of Native American Heritage Month, we pause to honor and appreciate the profound contributions of Indigenous communities that have shaped our state. Much like our ongoing work in the pursuit of a more equitable Maryland, the contributions of Indigenous people are woven into the very fabric of our history. In line with our commitment to Land Back, earlier this year we initiated a monthly contribution to support Indigenous communities in Maryland. Operating on stolen land, we voluntarily pay a monthly land tax to the Cedarville Band of Piscataway Indians, aiding efforts to revitalize Native land and communities while empowering Indigenous people to regain control of their ancestral territory.
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Please note that Progressive Maryland offices will be closed from November 22nd to November 26th.
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In Solidarity,
The Progressive Maryland Team
Read moreRoad workers' safety, stronger state project labor rules, replacing lost streetside trees and other enviro news -- News You Can Use
This week you can read about stronger labor protections in state-funded projects, safety for workers fixing our highways, the replanting of streetside trees in Baltimore County (hope the impulse catches on) and more enviro news including a big boost for Sparrow's Point, which will build offshore wind capacity, a thumbs down on gas-powered leaf blowers (very well timed) and a decision to send reading help to elementary schools to help all grades catch up on that skill (aren't you reading this on a screen? Of course you are). Plus good and bad ideas and proposals from around the states, and People's Action chimes in with the D.C. report, which is still dismal even though most of our, um, courageous legislators are home for the holidays. It's all News You Can Use.
Have a good holiday yourselves, eat well, feed others.
Read moreProgressive Maryland Stands With CASA
CASA released a statement condemning violence and have since apologized for parts of it. We shouldn’t let this teaching moment hinder CASA’s ability to provide the critical resources and day to day services that thousands of people across our state rely on. CASA is a reputable and highly respected organization we admire, and has been a pillar to immigrant communities for 35 years. We stand with CASA in supporting peace. Read their full statement here
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