Whammies, although too varied to add up to a double whammy, approach Marylanders at maybe a higher rate of speed than we are ready for. If you are an ACA participant, medical costs could climb 15 percent as Affordable Care Act subsidies vanish with federal cuts made to make up for the big tax breaks for the rich (yes, it is that simple). A more modest Maryland levy, cleverly called the "flush tax" by the bygone Hogan campaign, may not be cut back in 2030 after all -- it is working too well keeping the Bay clean (Trump Inc. won't do it so somebody's got to). Gov. Moore disappoints the no-data-center coalition by stopping short of a moratorium on the facilities in the state but requires them to "minimize their projects’ adverse impacts on local communities, ecosystems and energy infrastructure."  Another federally-based gripe for Maryland parents is the federal cutback on special education funding -- while the state's own watchdogs measure the benefits of the Blueprint for school improvement against costs. Meanwhile, good news for households but risky for business: can AI agents help you find cheaper services, travel and banking sources -- and what does that mean for the businesses who have been counting on "consumer inertia" [that is, it's too much trouble to switch] to keep their customers? All News You Can Use for this week... 

HERE IN MARYLAND

Summaries from Maryland Reporter

Maryland's ACA to See An Almost 15% Jump In Premiums: Marylanders who purchase individual health care plans on the state’s insurance marketplace will see a second year of double-digit increases to their monthly healthcare costs, after state insurance officials said Friday they have approved a 14.6% average premium rate increase across plans in 2027. For the 274,000 Marylanders who purchase plans on the state’s insurance market under the Affordable Care Act, called the Maryland Health Connection, the new approved rate increases will compound on last year’s 13.4% rate hike following the expiration of federal tax credits. Maryland Matters. >> The rates for 2027 are even higher than what insurance companies had initially proposed in June. MIA also approved a 10.2% increase to small market plans. “That increase is driven by changes from H.R. 1 as well as rising hospitalization and pharmaceutical costs,” said MIA Commissioner Marie Grant, referring to the Republican spending and tax law dubbed the Big, Beautiful Bill. WYPR-FM.

Moore's Data Center EO Seeks To Curb Closed-Door Deals: Gov. Wes Moore (D) issued an executive order Sept. 23 establishing a state task force that will compel data center developers to stop closed-door dealings and minimize their projects’ adverse impacts on local communities, ecosystems and energy infrastructure. Moore also promised to roll back state tax incentives for data centers but stopped short of pausing new data center development, much to the dismay of Maryland environmental groups.  Bay Journal.

Cuts To Federal Ed Dept Spur More Parents to Complain About Special Ed: Maryland parents and advocates filed roughly 630 state complaints about special education last year, a more than 200% increase since 2022. This spike tracks with a national trend and comes as the Trump administration has gutted much of the federal education department, choking one of the avenues parents have historically turned to when they believed a school violated their child’s rights.  Baltimore Banner.

Advocates Rally for Constitutional Redistricting Amendment: Democratic lawmakers, labor union officials and nonprofit leaders rallied in Baltimore on Friday to drum up support for ballot Question 3, the proposed constitutional amendment that would remove state standards for drawing congressional districts. The event came the same week that supporters and opponents of the measure released competing polls that showed mixed support for it. Backers at Friday’s event said it is time to step up and start fighting for Question 3. Maryland Matters.

Officer Masks and More: What New Laws Go into Effect Oct. 1: Hundreds of bills passed by Maryland lawmakers earlier this year will become law come Oct. 1. From legislation surrounding masked police to rap lyrics. Lawmakers passed a bill that will prohibit law enforcement officers working in the state, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, from using face coverings or masks. And there is more … Baltimore Banner. >> Eight laws taking effect Oct. 1 could affect consumers, renters, gun owners and people seeking health care. Those eight laws come from the governor’s main legislative priorities for 2026, controversial bills that attracted attention beyond the General Assembly and potentially impactful legislation seldom highlighted in political conversation. Baltimore Sun.

Lawmakers Consider Extending Flush Tax: Since its enactment in 2004, Maryland’s “flush tax” has raised $2.3 billion from property owners, funding pollution-saving upgrades at scores of wastewater treatment plants in the state and keeping hundreds of millions of pounds of nutrients out of the Chesapeake Bay. This fee for the Bay Restoration Fund is set to be cut in half in 2030, but a group of state legislators and Chesapeake Bay advocates want to step and head that off, possibly making it a subject of discussion in the 2027 legislative session. Maryland Matters.

Changes To Schools ‘Blueprint’ Eyed: The board overseeing implementation of Maryland’s sweeping education reform plan could propose some changes to the plan, even as another looming budget shortfall makes it a likely target for cuts to some lawmakers next year. A few of the changes being eyed by that Blueprint for Maryland’s Future Accountability and Implementation Board include adding more pathways for educators to achieve National Board Certification or other academic accreditation; providing funding for more college and career readiness classes; and conducting a study to assess how much to increase the base level of per pupil funding. Maryland Matters (9/25)

THE REGION/THE  OTHER 49

Spanberger proposes slate of data center regulations, puts first directives in motion Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger last week unveiled a package of legislative proposals to rein in the data center industry in the commonwealth, with goals to tighten environmental regulations, increase cost allocation for the industry and make the proposal process more transparent by barring non-disclosure agreements between localities and data center developers. The plan does not include a moratorium on data center development while the details of the plan are refined, a step several environmental and advocacy groups and citizens have demanded in recent weeks. Virginia Mercury

Virginia: Environmental advocacy groups are trying to determine the full extent of impacts from President Donald Trump’s rescission of a landmark Chesapeake Bay pollution reduction order that had brought states and localities together to identify pollution sources and ways to reduce sediment and nutrient loads. News from the States

Rhode Island study links sustained arts education — especially music — to lower chronic absenteeism
Continuous high school participation in arts classes — especially music — was associated with better school attendance in a new study conducted by Quadrant Research and commissioned by the Rhode Island State Council on the Arts. The Sept. 17 report’s primary question: “Do arts students have lower chronic absenteeism rates than non-arts students?” To answer it, researchers looked at state education department data spanning 2018 through 2025. The arts council believes the report’s findings could have implications for how the state deals with chronic absenteeism, which is defined as missing at least 10% of the days in a school year during which students are enrolled. Stateline

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: Advocates for AI safety are urging state lawmakers to pass laws holding developers liable for potential harms. The push comes amid disclosures that frontier models in testing phases have gone rogue. Model bills would require AI developers to ensure their products are safe and subject them to tort liability for failure to do so. Bills introduced in Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Vermont have fallen short so far. (Pluribus News)[paywalled]

GLOBAL, NATIONAL AND THE FEDS

Bipartisan pushback to taxpayer-funded Trump ads – “may be impeachable”
Former White House ethics attorney Richard Painter said the White House using taxpayer dollars for TV ads promoting President Trump could be “an impeachable offense.” “As I told [the New York Times], this could be an impeachable offense. @POTUS has no right to use taxpayer money for campaign ads,” Painter wrote Sunday on the social platform X, referencing similar remarks he made to The New York Times. “Congress has expressly prohibited government sponsored political propaganda, which is dangerous for democracy,” added Painter, who was former President George W. Bush’s chief ethics lawyer during his second term. The Hill

MORE WAR, CLOSER TO HOME: American military personnel joined Ecuador’s security forces in raids and arrests around the country, Semafor reports, targeting alleged drug traffickers, as the Trump administration steps up its hands-on involvement in fighting Latin America’s criminal groups. Vowing “unmatched military might” in the Western Hemisphere, US President Donald Trump has pursued closer security ties with right-wing governments and escalated military strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats. Trump’s approach is reshaping the role of the US military in a fight long led by Latin American security forces. “What we are seeing in Ecuador is unlike anything we’ve seen even during the Cold War,” a security expert told The Wall Street Journal, adding it could signal US troops getting “very close to or participating in combat.”

Warning signs abound in speculation-driven cash-for-homes offers
The signs, text messages and mailers promise cash, quick sales and a seamless means of unloading unwanted homes: WE BUY HOUSES. CASH 4 HOMES. FA$T CA$H. But advocates say the business of buying homes for cash can confuse vulnerable homeowners and rob them of home equity. And now, many states are cracking down, Stateline reports. Wholesalers often solicit directly, calling or door knocking looking for sales. But they’re best known by the signs lining curbs and utility poles. Real estate wholesaling operates distinctly from the traditional real estate market of listings, showings and agents. Wholesalers look to get unlisted homes under contract at a discount and then sell or assign that contract to another speculator before finalizing the property transfer — acting as a middleman and pocketing a profit along the way. The end buyer may flip the house for a profit or hold it as a rental property, but critics say the process can deprive owners of realizing the full value of their homes. A growing number of state lawmakers worry that buyers don’t fully understand the wholesaling process or even who will end up owning their home at the end of the sale. Lawmakers and regulators, backed by organized real estate trade groups and consumer advocacy organizations, are pushing for more limits on the practice. At least 15 states have recently approved new regulations of wholesalers. Stateline

Will an AI agent get you a better deal on cable or streaming? While global attention has focused on AI’s potential future threat to humanity, analysts argued the technology also poses significant risks to businesses — particularly those reliant on “consumer inertia” — in the here and now. [meaning monthly fees for services that are just too much trouble to switch] Apollo’s chief economist said AI assistants, such as Meta’s Muse agent, posed a major threat to banks: By helping households find the highest-possible savings rates, assistants could remove masses of money from low-interest deposit accounts that banks rely on to make loans, “which would be a problem for the entire financial system.” Insurers and travel agencies have already seen their stock prices fall, as investors fret that they could also suffer from improved price-comparison; one bank’s “consumer inertia” basket includes telecoms firms and streaming services, too. Semafor

Here’s the weekly update about misbehavior in the executive and legislative branches from Megan E, federal affairs director for Progressive Maryland’s national affiliate, People’s Action

Hello People's Action!

Last week, ICE shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez in the back at a traffic stop as he was working for a food delivery driver.  ICE then pushed to have Mr. Garcés Pérez released from the hospital quickly and put in detention. Congressman and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Greg Casar visited him over the weekend and told the press that Mr. Garcés Pérez needs surgery to remove the bullet. 

Republicans across the country are on defense as they face backlash from ICE activities that are disrupting business and schools in rural towns. 

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees Medicare and Medicaid, officially cosponsored Senator Sanders’s Medicare for All bill last week! He had stated that he supports Medicare for All at a town hall last month but had been trying to avoid putting his name officially on the bill. His constituents held his feet to the fire. 

[Congressional pre-election gyrations: The US House is on recess ‘til the midterms; the Senate hopes to get out for the same campaign break early-ish this week. Politico reports “Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a co-sponsor of the bill to overhaul college sports expected to pass the Senate tonight,” wants Speaker Johnson to bring the House back to session to pass it so Trump can sign it live on a pregame show before some marquee college football game. Observers suggest: fat chance. Other stuff the Senate may or may not get done before recess includes GOP Sen. Jon Husted’s data center bill, to protect him from attacks in his sizzling Ohio contest against Sherrod Brown, where data centers have become a public unfavorite. Democrats largely call it toothless legislation.

There’s also some chance for a largely bipartisan bill on restricting members of Congress in their dealings in the stock market, though it isn’t on everyone’s lips right now. And Punchbowl News reports “Senators will also be forced to vote on an Israel-related measure this week that could split Democrats. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) will call up a privileged resolution requiring the State Department to report to Congress on increasing violence in the West Bank.”]

TOOLS FOR CHANGE: ELECTION PROTECTION TAKE ACTION TOOLKIT

This toolkit has call tools to have people call their Members of Congress and Republican Governors. Please feel free to us, copy language or give us feedback. Please let me or Marta at [email protected] know if you need other resources. 

People’s Action Institute plans to submit written testimony to the Senate Finance RFI process in support of Medicare for All, legislation led by Senator Bernie Sanders and Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Debbie Dingell. Medicare for All will build on traditional Medicare to improve coverage to dental, vision & hearing, eliminate out of pocket costs so there are no copays or deductibles and would have this improved Medicare cover EVERYONE in the country regardless of their immigration status. There would be no networks. People could go to any health care provider anywhere they want, anytime.

To sign-on fill out this form:” https://forms.gle/ChAZwAxGGQsAFkcY9

STORY COLLECTION

We would like to include personal health care stories in our messaging. Please share your story below on why you support Medicare for All and we’ll include it in our organizational comments. ACTION NETWORK STORY COLLECTION LINK 

In solidarity,

Megan