Legislative Agenda

After vowing to invigorate Maryland's toothless Smart Growth program, Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to ask the legislature for only modest changes - far short of the overhaul that activists say is needed to curb suburban sprawl and halt the decline of the Chesapeake Bay. The governor intends to seek legislation reversing a court ruling that freed local officials from having to heed their own master plans when making growth decisions. He also wants to add new goals to the state planning law, and to require local governments to track more information on how growth is occurring in their communities.

In a bold legislative agenda that encompasses local and statewide initiatives, County Executive John R. Leopold is seeking to expand the powers of jurisdictions to punish critical area violators, ban panhandling along Anne Arundel roads and boost the county's share of state school construction money. During a meeting with the county's legislative delegation Friday in Annapolis, Leopold, a Republican, asked the 20 lawmakers to expand the statute of limitations on critical area violations from one to three years.

City Council President Sheila Dixon has appointed three top aides who will be responsible for the office's legislative agenda, fiscal affairs and community outreach.Dixon named Beatrice L. Tripps as director of fiscal affairs, Peter Dolkart director of legislative affairs, and Debbie Sines Crockett director of community outreach.Tripps, a former contract and program operations specialist in the city Office of Employment Development, will be responsible for budget issues before the Board of Estimates, of which Dixon is chairwoman.

In Baltimore CountyCouncil approves purchase of parcel for recreational spaceTOWSON -- Heeding a request from neighbors opposed to more development, the County Council approved last night the purchase of 16.5 acres on the west side of Perry Hall High School for recreational open space.Council members agreed to a $445,000 price, $83,000 more than appraisals obtained by the county said the land was worth. A land development company had previously agreed to purchase the property to create 80 townhouse lots, and county officials were forced to pay the same price the developers offered.

Determined to salvage his foundering proposal to increase Maryland's cigarette tax, Gov. Parris N. Glendening declared war against his State House adversaries last night -- threatening to veto bills backed by his opponents.A visibly angry Glendening said he would use all his power to force the Maryland Senate to vote on the tax bill, which has been stalled for two days by a filibuster mounted by about 20 Republicans and conservative Democrats."If these bills go down, there will be hell to pay," a grim-faced Glendening warned.

ONLY ONCE before did a president mount a defense in the Senate against removal from office. And not on the day he challenged Congress to carry out his legislative agenda.Not surprisingly, Mr. Clinton's self-defense is vigorous on two fronts. The first is to argue in constitutional law that the House charges -- if true -- do not justify removal from office.The second is to dispute those charges, telling senators not to assume that Mr. Clinton did what the House managers claim.White House counsel Charles Ruff was matter-of-fact yesterday in the constitutional arguments, in analyzing the differences between impeaching a judge appointed for life and a president, elected by the people, and in dissecting the articles of impeachment.

Maryland legislative leaders promised yesterday to tackle unfinished ethics matters within a few weeks, but critics complained that's not soon enough after the embarrassments of the just-concluded session.The General Assembly's ethics committee will wait until next month before beginning any review of outstanding allegations that several lawmakers may have crossed ethical lines."All of us are human beings, and there's limits to what we can do," said Del. Kenneth C. Montague Jr., a Baltimore Democrat who is a co-chairman.

WASHINGTON -- Journeying to Capitol Hill for solace and support, President Clinton received a rousing welcome yesterday from congressional Democrats.At the orchestrated pep rally, Clinton and Vice President Al Gore helped roll out a legislative agenda that has united Democrats more thoroughly than they have been since early in Clinton's administration. But Clinton also used the event to mend fences with Democratic members of Congress, many of whom have felt for years that the president has been insensitive to their political futures or legislative needs.

Gov. Parris N. Glendening proposed an ambitious expansion of Medicaid coverage in Maryland yesterday to include full health care for nearly 60,000 poor children and pregnant women.The new program, about two-thirds of which would be funded with federal dollars, would cover children through age 18 and pregnant women who are not covered by health insurance or who have limited benefits. Over the next three years, the state's share of the cost would grow from $29.4 million next year to $36.8 million in the year beginning July 1, 2000.

WASHINGTON -- The 105th Congress seems destined to become the meanest, least productive place in America for the next two years.The fight over House Speaker Newt Gingrich has become so acrimonious, so deeply personal for scores of lawmakers that the most urgent legislative hopes are sinking fast into the funk of unprecedented partisanship.Mr. Gingrich is so wounded by scandals that he will never again be able to ramrod into law anything controversial or of consequence, even if he survives a grim public detailing of his alleged ethics violations.

After vowing to invigorate Maryland's toothless Smart Growth program, Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to ask the legislature for only modest changes - far short of the overhaul that activists say is needed to curb suburban sprawl and halt the decline of the Chesapeake Bay. The governor intends to seek legislation reversing a court ruling that freed local officials from having to heed their own master plans when making growth decisions. He also wants to add new goals to the state planning law, and to require local governments to track more information on how growth is occurring in their communities.

When a slate of bills sponsored by Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. reached a state Senate committee last year, his supporters had to wait in a hallway for three hours before getting the chance to testify, only to be told by irritated Democratic lawmakers that they had heard about those issues "a zillion times." Yesterday, after Democratic Gov. Martin O'Malley delivered his first State of the State address, punctuated with pledges to partner with legislators, a bill that would create a new state accountability program was promptly heard by the Senate's Budget and Taxation Committee.

Returning to the themes of his campaign, Gov. Martin O'Malley plans to talk about strengthening the middle class, while addressing looming fiscal challenges in his first State of the State address today, according to administration officials. The speech, which was to be delivered at noon to a joint session of the General Assembly, will emphasize how issues such as education, public safety, health care and the environment relate to a strong and growing middle class. O'Malley's aides see today's speech as a way to tie together issues from the inaugural address, the budget and his legislative agenda - all of which have come over the past two weeks - and offer a clear vision for his new administration.

In a bold legislative agenda that encompasses local and statewide initiatives, County Executive John R. Leopold is seeking to expand the powers of jurisdictions to punish critical area violators, ban panhandling along Anne Arundel roads and boost the county's share of state school construction money. During a meeting with the county's legislative delegation Friday in Annapolis, Leopold, a Republican, asked the 20 lawmakers to expand the statute of limitations on critical area violations from one to three years.

Martin O'Malley is to be sworn in today as Maryland's 61st governor with a 19-gun salute, parade and inaugural ball, ending a four-year experiment in divided government in Annapolis. A steady stream of aides to Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. left their State House offices yesterday, clearing the way for the Democratic administration. Top secretaries in some departments submitted their resignations yesterday, and other workers in lower positions waited to see whether they would be replaced.

WASHINGTON -- House Republicans are taking over a luxury resort on the Eastern Shore for a conference that will feature a speech by President Bush and closed-door strategy sessions about changing Congress' ethics and lobbying rules. More than 160 of the 231 Republican representatives are expected to attend the event, which starts today, at the Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay Golf Resort, Spa and Marina in Cambridge. The annual gathering is a chance for House Republicans to discuss their legislative agenda and the fall elections with party leaders and pollsters.

Baltimore County Executive James T. Smith Jr. will ask the General Assembly for $110 million in school construction money this year while also pushing legislation addressing the state's troubled group-home system, identity theft and methamphetamine use. Smith's legislative agenda, unveiled yesterday, also seeks $13.4 million for community projects, including forest conservation, a community center and a regional agriculture center. Smith is requesting far more money for schools than in previous years.

WASHINGTON -- House Majority Leader Tom DeLay has launched a characteristically defiant response to attacks on his ethics and leadership, even as the dispute threatens to compete with the Republican legislative agenda when Congress returns this week from spring recess. As criticism of the 57-year-old Texan intensified last week with a blast from the conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board and the unveiling of an anti-DeLay television ad campaign by nonprofit groups, he began a counterattack designed to shore up his backing in the Republican House caucus and among social conservatives.

James T. Smith Jr., Baltimore County plans to focus its legislative lobbying on the construction needs of its aging schools amid predictions that money from the state for school projects will be severely limited again next year. County Executive James T. Smith Jr. said recently that while he has not yet finalized his wish list for the General Assembly session, which begins Jan. 12, the school system's capital needs are an obvious top priority. "If you think about government responsibility, once you get past protection of citizens, what's the next priority?

The sudden departure of Kweisi Mfume from the NAACP came as a jolt to many civil rights advocates and scholars. But now that Mfume is leaving, many are asking what kind of leader can excel in his footsteps or improve on his legacy. They agree the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People needs to be ambitious and articulate in outlining specific goals on social issues such as health care, education and jobs. Whether the new leader should approach the job as a diplomat or a firebrand is up for debate.