Maryland

Legislation Commits State to Reducing Greenhouse Gases 25 Percent by 2020

BALTIMORE, MD (January 23, 2009) – Today Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, along with sponsors Senator Paul Pinsky and Delegate Kumar Barve, unveiled legislation to commit Maryland to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by the year 2020.    » read more »

Closes $2 billion FY 2010 deficit; Protects funding for education and Maryland’s working families

ANNAPOLIS, MD (January 21, 2008) – Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, joined today by Lieutenant Governor Anthony Brown, released the FY 2010 budget for the State of Maryland. In the midst of a national economic recession, Maryland’s FY 2010 budget closes a projected $2 billion shortfall and protects the state’s progress in public education, workforce investments, and affordable higher education.    » read more »

August 24, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Staff Sgt. David L. Paquet, 26, of Rising Sun, Maryland, died Aug. 20 at Combat Outpost Vegas, Afghanistan, of undetermined causes while conduting a patrol.

He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, Fort Hood, Texas.

The incident is under investigation.

Source: DoD

More Than 500,000 Calls To Consumers On "Do Not Call" List

August 12, 2008 -- Harrisburg - Pennsylvania Attorney General Tom Corbett announced that consumer protection lawsuits have been filed against two business owners and their companies, who are accused of violating Pennsylvania's "Do Not Call" law and other consumer protection statutes.

The companies, based in Baltimore, Maryland, and State College, Pennsylvania, are accused of using illegal telephone solicitations to aggressively market mortgage products to consumers - including what Corbett alleges is the largest-ever systematic effort to violate the Do Not Call program since it was created in 2002.    » read more »

Construction set for four State E-85 facilities across Maryland

ANNAPOLIS, MD (August, 2008) – Just weeks after announcing plans to transition 500 MTA buses to hybrid, and days following the award of the highest grade ever for environmental initiatives from the Maryland League of Conservation Voters, Governor O’Malley was joined by Lt. Governor Anthony Brown and administration officials to present roadmap for a more sustainable transportation fuel system in Maryland, beginning with the construction of four new E-85 fuel pumps throughout Maryland.

To promote Maryland’s energy independence, Governor O’Malley outlined a plan that will combine consumer education, new technologies, and the development of an infrastructure such as the new facilities announced today.    » read more »

Tour Highlights Local Economic & Environmental Benefits of Shellfish Aquaculture in Coastal Bays

OCEAN CITY, MD (August 13, 2008) – Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley today, joined by Bay Cabinet members and Worcester County official, toured Chincoteague Bay, visiting a local oyster aquaculture business to explore and discuss the potential economic and environmental benefits of expanding Maryland’s aquaculture industry.    » read more »

ANNAPOLIS, MD (August 11, 2008) – Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley released the following statement today regarding the fatal accident on the Bay Bridge:

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of those involved in the accident that took place on the Bay Bridge early Sunday morning.

The unique nature of this incident and its aftermath have posed challenges for us all, but I want to commend the response of our State and local agencies and first responders for their quick and decisive action when they arrived on the scene. I also want to recognize the tremendous effort of the bridge inspection, engineering and maintenance crews that have worked diligently the past two days to make the necessary repairs and ensure the bridge is safe for travel.    » read more »

BALTIMORE, MD (August 6, 2008) - Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler announced today that his Consumer Protection Division has reached a settlement with an Elkton, Maryland propane gas supplier over the company’s imposition of a “Government Agency Regulatory Compliance fee" ( “Government Compliance fees”). The company, Schagrin Gas Company, Inc., agreed to stop charging its customers fees unless they were previously disclosed in their service agreements. The company will also provide its existing customers with a credit for the Government Compliance fees that they were previously charged.    » read more »

August, 2008 -- Solomons Island, MD - A coalition of safe energy advocates warned today that the third reactor proposed at the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant is not in the public’s best interest and likely will become an extremely costly and dangerous mistake for the region’s energy policy. The advocates were scheduled to testify at Maryland Public Service Commission’s first public meeting Monday night on the proposal to build a new atomic reactor on the Chesapeake Bay.

UniStar, a consortium of Baltimore-based Constellation Energy and the French electricity operator EDF, has selected the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power station in Lusby, Maryland, for the construction of the first 1,600-megawatt Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR) proposed for the United States.    » read more »

August 04, 2008 -- The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sgt. Ryan P. Baumann, 24, of Great Mills, Maryland, died Aug. 1, on Route Alaska, Afghanistan, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device.

He was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky.

Source: DOD

August 5, 2008 -- ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential campaign today announced the Maryland Statewide Leadership Team. This team of Maryland leaders will help organize the campaign's grassroots efforts across the state and will communicate John McCain's message of greater national security, a stronger economy and meaningful government reform.

Each of Maryland's 24 counties and five regions will have designated chairmen at the local and regional level to serve as the points of contact for local volunteers and supporters in each county and region.    » read more »

Wallops Major Employer for Maryland’s Eastern Shore Residents; Big Business for State

ANNAPOLIS, MD -- June 9, 2008 – Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley today applauded Orbital Sciences Corporation’s announcement to select their base of operations in the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, located at the NASA Wallops Island Flight Facility. Approximately 35 percent of Wallops employees are residents of Maryland’s Eastern Shore.    » read more »

Subsidiary of BioLineRx Opens U.S. Office in Rockville, Hires Local Business Development Executive

BALTIMORE, MD -- May 29, 2008 – As part of his economic development mission to Israel, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley today announced that BioLineRx USA, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of BioLineRx, one of Israel’s leading drug development companies, has opened a U.S. office in Maryland.

BioLineRx USA has already hired a local Vice President of Business Development to seek out potential collaborative opportunities for BioLineRx in Maryland and the U.S.    » read more »

BALTIMORE, Md. (05/28/2008) - Hurricane season doesn’t officially start until June 1, but the Maryland National Guard and the Baltimore County Fire Department aren’t waiting until then to get acquainted.

On May 17, a small detachment of Maryland Guard Soldiers from 1st Battalion, 224th Aviation Regiment (Security & Support) in Edgewood, Md., with two, high clearance five-ton trucks and a Humvee traveled to Baltimore County Fire Department’s (BCFD) station #17 to rehearse and train with the counties swift water and flood rescue teams.    » read more »

May 21, 2008 -- Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, today announced that the Committee approved S. 2555, “The Reducing Global Warming Pollution from Vehicles Act of 2008,” a bill that instructs the President to sign the California waiver so that California and other states can proceed with laws to improve air quality problems from cars.

On December 19, 2007, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson denied California’s request for the waiver – the first time in history that EPA had ever denied outright a request from California for a waiver to do more to cut air pollution.    » read more »