Iannucci

House Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr. and the governor's economic development chief urged the state's $33 billion pension system yesterday to consider investing $150 million in technology parks near college campuses and federal laboratories. Taylor and David Iannucci, secretary of business and economic development, told the Maryland Pension Board's investment committee that such developments are in high demand and probably would make money. Iannucci said high-technology businesses in Maryland are scrambling to find office and laboratory space, especially in sites near research institutions.

Members of the Prince George's County Council and other county officials will bring a countywide town hall meeting to Laurel next week. "Growing Opportunities in Prince George's County," an economic development town hall meeting, will be held Tuesday, Oct. 23 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Laurel High, 8000 Cherry Lane. The meeting will include an economic development update from David Iannucci, the county's Assistant Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Economic Development; and Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Gwen McCall.

Here's a first-look at the HBO satire, "VEEP," starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and it's a winner. The series from Armando Iannucci ("In The Loop") was filmed in Baltimore last year and debuts April 22 on the premium cable channel. I'm working on a magazine story about the series. It includes a set visit and interviews with Iannucci, Louis-Dreyfus, executive producer Frank Rich and others. This trailer makes me feel like my sense during the set visit -- that this was a smart, savvy and special TV series -- was right.

Being on TV is nothing new for Baltimore. Think of the recent political dramas like "Game Change" and "VEEP" or earlier crime shows like "Homicide" and"The Wire. " But what's going on within a five-acre area of production offices and massive warehouses turned soundstages in Joppa is a new game altogether. The makers of the $100 million Netflix political thriller "House of Cards" are virtually building their own Washington in Harford County. There, the vaulted interiors of the Capitol, much of the West Wing of the White House and even a cramped Adams-Morgan apartment are taking shape.

Economic development officials from four Maryland counties said yesterday that they are starting to see the effects of a depressed economy, from vacant hotel rooms and office buildings to jumps in unemployment rates. Officials from Prince George's, Howard, Anne Arundel and Montgomery counties, at a gathering to talk about the economic health of their communities, shared how they're dealing with the worst economic slowdown in nearly a decade. The Baltimore-Washington Corridor Chamber of Commerce, which promotes business opportunities in the four counties, brings the executives together every year.

Hofstra junior Athan Iannucci had five goals and three assists and Chris Unterstein added three goals and two assists to lead the third-seeded Pride to a 14-8 victory over Providence (10-7) in the first round of the NCAA Division I men's lacrosse tournament in Hempstead, N.Y. Hofstra, which recorded its 17th consecutive victory to improve to 17-1 for the season, tied the NCAA Division I record for most victories in a single season, set by Duke in 2005. The victory sends the Pride into Saturday's Northern quarterfinal at Stony Brook against Massachusetts, which beat the Pride, 11-7, in the season opener Feb. 26. It will be Hofstra's fourth trip to the men's lacrosse quarterfinals.

General Dynamics Corp. and its subcontractors expect to hire as many as 110 workers in Baltimore County who will work on computer systems for a new government program that will help retirees receive health care coverage, officials said Thursday. The defense contractor said Thursday that its information technology division won an $80 million award to work on the Department of Health and Human Services' Early Retiree Reinsurance Program. The program is part of the health care reform package that was passed this year and is intended to help retirees who are not yet eligible for Medicare obtain affordable insurance.

Private venture capital funds are not providing enough money to support Maryland's rapidly growing biotechnology industry, according to a study released yesterday by the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development and two other organizations. The study found that the state's biotechnology industry has a "venture capital funding gap" of $50 million to $100 million annually. Maryland also ranks 12th out of a dozen states in private venture capital financing relative to the number of biotechnology firms in each state.

ANNAPOLIS -- Lt. Gov. Melvin A. Steinberg split with his boss, Gov. William Donald Schaefer, yesterday over what course the administration should recommend for its controversial Linowes commission tax restructuring proposal.Mr. Schaefer wants the bill passed this year. Mr. Steinberg said ++ he was convinced the measure needed to be studied by the General Assembly and subjected to public hearings this summer.As a result, Mr. Steinberg, who is in charge of the governor's legislative agenda, said he had decided not to testify at a joint legislative hearing today on the tax proposal legislation.

"VEEP" is the kind of series that separates HBO from almost every other channel or network making television these days. It takes great risks, dares to break new ground, includes some of the most imaginative artists working in the arts and aims for nothing less than absolute cultural relevance. Oh, yeah: It is also very, very funny in its snarky, off-beat, highly profane, single-camera way. That sensibility might take a little getting used to for some viewers. But give it a chance, and you will come to love the way it's used here to illuminate the darkness at the heart of our partisan-crazed, gridlocked and bleak national political life.