Thursday, April 4, 2013
The 28-19 vote helps Gov. Martin O'Malley's top legislative priority avoid a conference committee some believed would kill the legislation.
Maryland senators voted Thursday night to approve an amended gun control bill rather than send the legislation to conference committee. Senators approved the bill by a vote of 28-19 just one day after the House debated the bill for 10 hours over two-days and added 17 amendments to a bill previously approved by the Senate. The bill was a major component of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s legislative priorities for the 90-day legislative session. “The fact is, the Firearm Safety Act of 2013 provides no safety,” said Sen. EJ Pipkin, Senate Minority Leader. The concurrence means that the bill goes to Gov. Martin O’Malley for his signature rather than to a conference committee with just four days left in the session. Sen. Brian Frosh, a Montgomery …
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
The amended bill, passed by a 78-61 vote, will go back to the Senate and possibly a conference committee.
The Maryland House of Delegates Wednesday passed gun control legislation proposed by Gov. Martin O'Malley by a vote of 78-61. The amended bill bans 40 kinds of rifles including the AR15, requires fingerprinting and licensing of all purchasers of new guns and broadens the law prohibiting firearms purchases by anyone who is involuntarily committed because of mental illness. The bill was a major component of O'Malley's legislative package announced at the beginning of the 90-day session. The House of Delegates debated the bill for nearly 10 hours over two days. The amended bill will return to the Senate. The bill could go to a conference committee if the Senate does not accept the changes made by the House. Both the House and Senate must …
Friday, March 29, 2013
The bill that increases the gasoline tax by as much as 20 cents by 2016 now heads to Gov. Martin O'Malley for his signature.
A tax that will increase the cost of gas by as much as 20 cents by 2016 was given final approval Friday by the Maryland Senate. The bill passed largely along party lines by a vote of 27-20. Eight Democrats joined all 12 Republicans in opposing the tax increase measure. The bill now goes to the desk of Gov. Martin O'Malley, who is expected to sign the tax into law. The final vote came after legislators suspended the rules, allowing them to take both a preliminary and final vote in the same day and allow many lawmakers to leave the capital to observe Good Friday. The bill increases the state's tax on gas by more than 20 cents to 43.7 cents per gallon on July 2016. The tax would increase to 44.6 cents per gallon if the federal government …
Thursday, March 28, 2013
A preliminary vote in the full Maryland Senate could be scheduled as early as Friday.
The Senate Budget and Tax Committee Thursday approved a bill that would increase the gas tax by as much as 20 cents by 2016. Sen. Ed DeGrange, an Anne Arundel County Democrat, joined Republican Sens. David Brinkley, Richard Colburn and George Edwards in voting against the bill. The nine remaining Democrats on the committee voted in favor of the bill as approved last week by the House of Delegates. With the committee's approval, the bill could be scheduled for a preliminary vote by the full 47-member Senate as early as Friday. The bill would increase the state's tax on gas by more than 20 cents to 43.7 cents per gallon on July 2016. The tax would increase to 44.6 cents per gallon if the federal government fails to pass an Internet sales tax…
Friday, March 22, 2013
The final debate on the bill turns contentious amidst accusations that House Speaker Michael Busch cut short the debate and opportunity to vote.
Tempers flared Friday afternoon following the debate and final vote by the House of Delegates on a proposal to raise the gas tax in Maryland. When the final vote was taken, the House approved the bill 78-56 but the actual outcome, and roll call vote, remains a matter of contention amidst accusations from Republicans that the debate and final vote were ended too quickly. The bill would increase the state's tax on gas by more than 20 cents to 43.7 cents per gallon on July 2016. The tax would increase to 44.6 cents per gallon if the federal government fails to pass an Internet sales tax. The tax is also tied to the consumer price index, which would allow for automatic increases without any additional legislative action. Those increases are …
Friday, March 15, 2013
The bill now goes to Gov. Martin O'Malley for his signature.
The Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill repealing the death penalty in Maryland. With the 82-56 vote, the bill will go to Gov. Martin O'Malley for his signature.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Capital punishment in Maryland already is effectively dead, according to some prosecutors.
- GOVERNMENT
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Saturday, February 9
By Julia Maldonado, Capital News Service A bill that would repeal the death penalty in Maryland appears to have the votes needed to clear the Senate, adding momentum to Gov. Martin O’Malley and proponents’ push for repeal. But some prosecutors and other death penalty supporters say a repeal would only make official what is already true—capital punishment doesn’t really exist in Maryland. The state has one of the most restrictive death penalty laws in the country. Combine that with bureaucratic opposition from the governor and judges’ reluctance to impose the ultimate penalty, and even the most violent criminals are not likely to ever be executed, some say. “I don’t want them to ever have the opportunity to do it again,” said Sen. Kathleen …
Thursday, February 7, 2013
A state senator wants a new state bird; one man's technolgical fortress is his castle; and the Senate president feels snubbed by Obama.
It's not a statue in front of the office building that bares his name but Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller did receive a bust of himself this week courtesy of the Regional Manufacturing Institute. Sen. Kathy Klausmeier, a Perry Hall Democrat, gave a sneak preview of the small, light-weight bust of Miller moments before presenting it to the Senate's top dog. "You can't have too much Mike Miller," Klausmeier said. The technology is similar to what was used in a scene of Jurassic Park 3 where a copy of a velociraptor's larynx was recreated. The institute offered legislators in Annapolis the opportunity to have themselves scanned into a computer and get busts of themselves. Miller seemed impressed with the petite bust but joked that it …
Hundreds head to Annapolis to testify for and against a package of bills that would tighten gun regulations in Maryland.
Gun control supporters and opponents descended on a hearing room in Annapolis to debate a package of bills that is likely to be as divisive as any issue during the 90-day General Assembly session. Gov. Martin O'Malley said his legislation was driven by the shootings in Newtown, CT. and more than 500 shooting deaths in Maryland last year. "We are still losing too many of our citizens to gun violence," O'Malley said. "There's no such thing in our state as a spare American." Hundreds gathered outside the State House Wednesday morning, hours before O'Malley was to testify, to rally against the proposed laws. A line of people waiting to testify stretched outside the Senate office building. More than 500 people signed up to testify even though …
A comparison of existing state gun laws and proposed changes at the federal and state level.
- GOVERNMENT
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Thursday, February 7
By Allen Etzler Capital News Service Gov. Martin O’Malley and President Barack Obama have proposed gun control and public safety legislation in response to the December school shootings in Newtown, CT. Here are some current Maryland laws, and the proposed legislative changes: Current Maryland Gun Laws Handguns: Assault Weapons: Ammunition Magazines: Proposed Changes to Maryland Law Proposed Changes to Federal Law
Deborah A Cox
3:32 pm on Sunday, April 14, 2013
In the end the only ones that will have guns are bad guys cause they already break the law. The good people of this state will not be able to protect themselves police cannot live in our home and go every where with us. So I remain scared to death. more ›