Have you missed your News You Can Use? We are doing our best not to let this stuff pile up on us, so here is another roundup of the news from Maryland, the other 49 states and even the lumbering 119th Congress, which just got underway today with the rather lurching re-election of House Speaker Johnson (good luck with the Freedom Caucus, now led by our own Rep. Andy Harris, O Mr. Speaker).

We'll see you again this Monday with the return of the Progressive Maryland Weekly Memo, but meanwhile here's a weekender to get you fresh for the fight in 2025.

Have you missed your News You Can Use? We are doing our best not to let this stuff pile up on us, so here is another roundup of the news from Maryland, the other 49 states and even the lumbering 119th Congress, which just got underway today with the rather lurching re-election of House Speaker Johnson (good luck with the Freedom Caucus, now led by our own Andy Harris, O Mr. Speaker).

HERE IN MARYLAND

Getting around in 2025 (and beyond)? Here’s a handy roundup from Maryland Matters on transportation issues in our state.

“In any other year, the announcement by Gov. Wes Moore (D) that the state was reviving plans for the Red Line light rail in Baltimore, reversing his predecessor’s decision to kill the project, might have been the transportation story of the year.

“But 2025 was far from any other year in transportation news in Maryland.

“The news was dominated by the shocking crash and collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge that killed six, threatened to throttle the state’s economy by shutting down the Port of Baltimore and sparked a rush for funding, from lawsuits and from the federal government.

“That scramble for funding comes as the state is looking at a $1.3 billion gap between projects in the six-year Consolidated Transportation Program and the money in the faltering Transportation Trust Fund that is expected to be available to pay for them.

“And the long-simmering challenge with transportation funding poses a dilemma for business and legislative leaders, who say the key to jump-starting Maryland’s lethargic economy is to bolster the state’s road and transit networks. But there is little money for the big items on the state’s wish list — items that include not just a Red Line, but an expanded American Legion Bridge and new Chesapeake Bay spans.”

All of those challenges will continue into 2025, and likely beyond. Read on, get the details…

MORE FROM MARYLAND:

https://marylandmatters.org/2025/01/02/housing-advocates-aim-to-build-on-this-years-wins-to-push-just-cause-other-efforts-in-2025/

Now it's blue states' turn at bat: When the Supreme Court made it easier to challenge federal rules, it boosted red-state challenges to Biden policies; now, blue-states taking on Trump policies stand to gain. (Jan 2 Stateline via MD Matters)

Property Assessments Up 20% Over 3 Years: Property tax assessments in Maryland will climb in 2025, reflecting the state’s tight housing inventory and rising home prices and leading to higher tax bills for many owners. The total assessed value on residential and commercial property around the state rose a combined 20.1% over three years, according to the State Department of Assessments and Taxation. Baltimore Sun via Maryland Reporter >>Property values increased in southern Frederick County 28.6% from three years ago, new assessments show. These trends mirrored statewide trends. In Maryland, commercial property values for the newly reassessed region increased 16.4% and residential ones by 21.1%, when compared to 2022 values. Frederick News-Post

IN THE OTHER 49

From our friends at PLURIBUS, their assessment of the top issues of 2025 in the states and cities:

State Legislatures face 2025: The first three months of an odd year is the busiest quarter of a legislative cycle. By the end of January, 44 states will have kicked off their sessions, setting new goals and priorities after an election season that left majorities intact in all but a few states.

MAYORS: Incumbent mayors in Atlanta, Boston, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Minneapolis, New York City, Pittsburgh, Seattle and St. Louis are running or eligible to run for new terms. Retiring mayors will leave open seats in Detroit, Miami, New Orleans and San Antonio. New York Mayor Eric Adams (D) faces a big group of Democratic rivals; Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) had a difficult first term handling the riots after the murder of George Floyd.

Here are the big policy trends we expect to emerge in the states in coming months:

Artificial Intelligence: If 2024 kicked off the race to regulate AI in blue states, this year will represent the first big red state foray into the fast-emerging space. We’re watching legislation introduced by Texas Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (R), whose bill may become the template other GOP lawmakers build from.

Technology: Legislators are trying to regulate the interaction between social media platforms and minor users, with mixed success. Their next target may be AI companion bots, platforms that allow users to form relationships with artificial personalities, after high-profile cases in Florida and Texas where teens were allegedly urged to harm themselves. 

Energy: The booming demand for compute power from data centers is the new gold rush, as states throw economic development money at tech firms that are spending billions to boost their AI abilities. All those data centers consume a lot of energy, and states are turning to green energy and nuclear power to meet demand.

Abortion: Most blue states have done what they can to codify and protect abortion rights. But red states are expanding their fight to restrict abortion access, led by Louisiana, where Gov. Jeff Landry (R) has already signed legislation making access to two common abortion-inducing drugs more difficult. Expect other red states to take their own shots at mifepristone and misoprostol.

Health Care: As the Trump administration prepares to take office, red states are preparing new applications to include work requirements for Medicaid recipients. South Dakota, Ohio and Montana have already made their plans public, while Florida is delaying an expansion of a children’s health insurance program in hopes the Trump team will side with them in a dispute over missed premiums.

Housing: In policy, success often breeds success. The states that passed massive housing reform packages in 2024 — Oregon, New Mexico, Colorado and others — are likely to inspire regulatory reform efforts in other states too. Easing environmental rules is the most likely red state play, while both Democrats and Republicans are likely to review single- and multi-family zoning rules.

Government Reform: The end of the pandemic-era budget boom and Trump’s focus on his Department of Government Efficiency are likely to spur a new rush to reform state-level agencies as well. Already, red states are kicking off their own DOGE-like programs meant to trim the fat.

 >>Numbers to consider

46,610: The number of people stopped for unlawfully crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in November, the lowest figure in four years. (Los Angeles Times)

317 lbs.: The amount of illegal drugs seized at Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage this year, about a third of which was fentanyl. The haul was about twice the amount of illegal drugs seized there in 2023. (Alaska Beacon)

D.C. AND THE FEDS

From Stateline we see “with a record 62 members, the Congressional Black Caucus held a ceremonial swearing-in Friday morning, with hundreds of well-wishers on hand. 

“The current class of lawmakers includes 62 elected Democrats, including the first two Black women senators to serve alongside one another.”  [from states, Maryland and Delaware,  that are also alongside one another – Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware].