Legislators

A cabal of corrupt corrections officers and members of the Black Guerrilla Family gang enjoyed nearly free rein inside the Baltimore City Detention Center, federal authorities allege, smuggling drugs and cellphones into the jail and having sexual relationships that left four guards pregnant. An indictment unsealed Tuesday names 25 people - including 13 women working as corrections officers - who face racketeering and drug charges. Twenty of the accused also face money-laundering charges.

Graduation season has arrived, and with the accompanying recognitions of hard work, we have something else to celebrate: this year's passage and today's signing of the College Readiness and Completion Act of 2013. Never before has the state of Maryland established such clear, student-friendly statewide policies designed to help many more Marylanders earn the postsecondary credentials they will need to support themselves, their families and their communities. Along with Sen. Richard Madaleno and Del. John Bohanan, who chair the General Assembly's budget subcommittees on education, we developed this comprehensive legislation to ensure that Maryland's students are ready for college and the work force - and really, life - after high school.

In his letter to the editor ("Gay marriage contradicts God's word"), Robert Greene says he is upset with the politicians that we have entrusted to run our government and believe they have sold us out. I have to point out that Maryland's legislators represent all Maryland citizens, including tax-paying gays and lesbians. Mr. Greene alleges that "those of us who know the Bible know that it soundly condemns homosexuality, despite what some denominationalists say. " That would be relevant if we lived in a theocracy like Iran or Saudi Arabia.

An education advocate and a longtime state lawmaker say they are eyeing Baltimore County Councilman Todd Huff's seat. Democrat Laurie Taylor-Mitchell, an art historian and local education advocate, said she has decided to run for the four-year term in 2014, and Republican Del. Wade Kach said he's "seriously considering it. " Huff, a Lutherville Republican, was elected in 2010 for the district that covers the northern part of the county....

Sen. Jim Brochin Medical marijuanaY CellphoneY Death penaltyN Gas taxN Gun controlY Del. William Frank Medical marijuanaY CellphoneY Death penaltyY Gas taxN Gun controlN Del. Stephen Lafferty Lafferty Medical marijuanaY CellphoneY Death penaltyY Gas taxN Gun controlY Del. Sue Aumann Medical marijuanaY CellphoneY Death penaltyY Gas taxN Gun controlN ...

Our legislators have promised a brighter future for our state's youth. Making their safety a top priority should be a cornerstone of that promise. Life-saving legislation that protects our youngest and most vulnerable drivers would be a good place to start. Crash statistics involving teen drivers are sobering. Crashes are the leading cause of death for teens, and they are three times as likely to crash as more experienced drivers. Using cell phones while driving, driving or riding with their peers or driving late at night all significantly increase teen drivers' already high crash risk.

It seems that our state legislators, with big deficits looming in their faces, have plenty of time to involve themselves with such topics as cutting tuition for illegal immigrants and allowing dogs in restaurants ( "Bill would cut tuition for illegal immigrants" and "More eateries may proclaim 'bone appétit,'" March 7.) They should be ashamed to take their salary. We could elect monkeys and chimps to do that. F. Cordell, Lutherville

According to the book of Genesis, the core of the devil's temptation of Adam and Eve was the suggestion that they would become like gods, knowing good and evil. Last Friday's decision by the Maryland House of Delegates is only one of several recent attempts by legislatures, courts and government executives to act like gods, redefining good and evil. How much longer will it be before they start acting like Roman emperors, demanding that we worship them as gods? Charles Roswell, Columbia

A six-month impasse between the Board of Education and the Howard County Education Association the largest union in the school system, will now be determined by the Maryland Public School Labor Relations Board (MPSLRB). It is important for the reader to understand that the MPSLRB was established by Gov. Martin O'Malley and the Democrat-led General Assembly in 2010 to settle disputes between local school boards and unions. The MPSLRB consists of five members appointed by the governor with Senate consent.

Let's remind Del. Pat McDonough ("Towson melee not the same as Inner Harbor crime," Sept. 29) and Sen. Jim Brochin ("On Towson melee, Rodricks needs to check his facts," Oct. 1) that we live in a region that includes Baltimore City and county. This region is made up of all types of people - black, white, brown, rich and poor. If our politicians started seeing this as a region, they could begin addressing problems of poverty, unemployment and education in a meaningful way rather than resorting to stereotypes to lay blame for our region's problems.

Editor: Regarding Gov. Martin O'Malley's Gift List: O'Malley's fans in the press and media have proclaimed the governor has had another successful session.  Let us review the gifts that O'Malley has provided for his fellow Marylanders during the past six years: ·       Gas tax hike; ·       Sales tax hike; ·       Alcohol sales tax hike; ·       Rain tax; ·       Flush tax Increase; ...

Have you ever just messed up? I'm not talking about leaving your coffee on the roof of your car. I mean a major, life-altering mistake. Think fiscal cliff-level personal disaster. Now imagine paying for the mistake with jail time - then continuing to pay for the rest of your life by being shut out of every new opportunity to reestablish yourself. That's the life of Marylanders with prior misdemeanor convictions right now, and the General Assembly appears to want them to keep living their nightmares, while taxpayers foot the bill.

Those thinking "done deal" after the state adopted a stormwater runoff fee may have another thing coming. Even though counties, including Baltimore and Howard, have adopted measures to comply with the fee, resistance is building to what some are now scornfully calling a "rain tax. " Not only was the fee structure bill in Anne Arundel County recently vetoed by the county executive, but now there are predictions the state legislature will reconsider how...

With the pension system for City Hall workers facing nearly $700 million in unfunded liabilities, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is introducing legislation today that would require employees to start contributing part of their salaries to the fund. The bill would require Baltimore's non-public safety workers to contribute 1 percent of their salaries to the pension fund next fiscal year, and increase those contributions each year for five years until workers contribute 5 percent. The legislation also would eliminate the so-called "variable benefit" for civilian retirees, which increases benefits when the fund preforms well, but doesn't decrease benefits when the market performs poorly.

The state agency charged with overseeing Maryland's public school construction projects was found to have lacked proper monitoring of contracts, projects and maintenance inspections, according to a legislative audit. The audit, released Friday, examined the fiscal and managerial operations of the Interagency Committee on School Construction (IAC) primarily in fiscal year 2011, when the agency approved 355 district-level contracts totaling $566 million - $249 million of which was state funding.

The Maryland General Assembly has wisely reaffirmed the importance of maintaining Program Open Space, the state's premier program to conserve land and create recreation areas, as a dedicated fund based on revenues from the transfer of real estate ("Crunching numbers on Maryland's land," April 18). While the legislature cut Rural Legacy and the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Fund by $9 million, we were pleased the assembly rejected a restructuring of land conservation programs proposed by the Department of Legislative Services.

To escape fiscal jeopardy, Gov. Martin O'Malley and the General Assembly are whacking the pensions and retiree health benefits of state employees — well, most state employees. The budget being debated in Annapolis would do nothing to change generous pensions for Maryland governors or legislators. Shouldn't the policymakers serving up pain to teachers, safety inspectors, revenue analysts and so forth drink from the same cup? "Absolutely," says Thomas V. Mike Miller, president of the Senate.

Gov. Martin O'Malleyis a lame duck, so we can't refuse to re-elect him. His "flush tax" will affect people of all incomes, as will his gas tax, which will affect not only drivers but transportation costs on all goods. While we can't do anything about our out-of-touch governor, our legislators in Annapolis can be voted out of office. Some of them have been in office way too long anyway, but if they just choose to rubber stamp the governor's proposals instead of cutting the spending and corruption, they should be tossed out on their collective ears.

Small businesses would be protected from the type of fraud allegedly committed by Harford County payroll firm AccuPay Inc. under legislation being proposed by Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski. The Maryland Democrat plans to introduce a bill that would require payroll service providers to register with the Internal Revenue Service and be either bonded or certified by the tax agency. It also would set federal penalties for payroll firms that fail to send clients' tax payments to the government.

Linda Fletcher lives in fear of reliving a nightmare: a son dying from a heroin overdose. Her son Kris Klipner succumbed to the drug in 2007. He was 28. Klipner's half-brother battles the same kind of depression as Kris. He suffers the same heroin addiction Kris did. Kirk Fletcher, 29, is in a methadone program to help him avoid the drug. He says he has his addiction under control. But he understands his mother's fear that it will return - just as his brother's did. Linda Fletcher is hopeful that some relief is on the way. New legislation, pushed by Fletcher and other parents, backed by the state health department and passed unanimously this year by both chambers of the Maryland General Assembly, creates a statewide program allowing family members of addicts to be prescribed and trained in administering Naloxone.