Free Republic

Driven on the Intercounty Connector lately? No? You’re not alone. Many haven’t. The 18.8-mile highway—the first stretch of which opened two and a half years ago after great hype and amid great controversy—is the road less traveled. Traffic counts are well below early projections, and revenue from tolls—needed to pay off the bonds that were sold to build the road—is far less than originally anticipated. The initial estimated cost of $1 billion has ballooned to $2.4 billion—or as much as $4 billion if you include interest payments. Consequently, all tolls on Maryland highways, bridges and tunnels have been raised in...

Prince George’s County voters could tip the balance in Maryland’s two most closely contested ballot initiatives on Election Day. Polls have shown that Maryland voters are closely divided on referendums to expand gambling and legalize same-sex marriage, and Prince George’s residents have been courted heavily in both campaigns. The county’s voters have unofficial veto power over part of the gambling initiative that would allow a Prince George’s casino, and its abundance of religious, socially conservative black Democrats are widely seen as a pivotal demographic in the marriage battle. “This is a really important election for us,” said Pat Myers, an...

"WTOP’S Ari Ashe is reporting that Prince George’s County is mounting cameras to monitor its traffic cameras. This comes following a half dozen incidents of vandalism and general meanness toward the cameras in the county." "A camera was actually shot with a gun. Another was set on fire. Those attacks mark a step up in looniness from a man who allegedly fired glass marbles at a Howard County traffic camera earlier this summer."

A 17-year-old Prince George’s County honor student who aspired to attend Harvard University was killed in her bedroom after a gunman burst into her house, police said Thursday — a crime considered unthinkable to residents who remembered the girl for her ambition and intellect. The shooting occurred at about 10:15 p.m. Wednesday inside a split-level home on a quiet street of single-family houses in the Kettering neighborhood. Detectives are investigating a report that the gunman came through the front door, made his way into the house in the 100 block of Chartsey Street and shot Amber Deanna Stanley. Other family...

ANNAPOLIS — The General Assembly passed legislation Tuesday night to expand gambling in the state, setting up a November referendum that will determine the proposal’s ultimate fate. After six hours of passionate debate, the House voted 71-58 in favor of the bill, which would allow table games at the state’s slots casinos and at a sixth gambling facility to be built in Prince George’s County if voted into law. The Senate approved the House amendments to the bill shortly after midnight, finalizing the legislation and wrapping up a four-day special session. Gov. Martin O'Malley, a Democrat, is expected to sign...

ANNAPOLIS — The Senate voted Friday to approve a gambling expansion bill, sending the legislation to the House where floor debate is expected to begin Monday. The Senate voted 28-14 in favor of the bill, which would legalize table games at the state’s slots casinos and allow a new casino to be built in Prince George’s County, pending approval in a November referendum.

The decision whether to eat at Chick-fil-A has become a hot-button issue since the fast food company’s president opened up about his support for traditional marriage, but one local politician says she’s not making a political statement by welcoming the company with open arms. Prince George's County Council member Karen R. Toles, a Democrat, said she’s attending the opening of a Chick-fil-A in District Heights on Thursday to celebrate the economic development in her community. “When you have someone who hires over 100 people from your county alone, that is something to celebrate,” Ms. Toles said. Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy...

Maryland legislators will be cutting their summer vacations short after Gov. Martin O'Malley announced a special session for Aug. 9 to address gambling questions left unanswered in the spring. But after Mr. O'Malley repeatedly urged state leaders to “put the issues behind us so we can move forward,” some people are wondering whether the decision was a risky bluff. It’s the second special session this summer — Mr. O'Malley called the first one in mid-May to wrap up the budget — and the issues of table game expansion at Maryland’s existing casinos and adding a sixth casino in Prince George’s...

Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley will call a special session of the General Assembly between Aug. 9 and Aug. 16 to discuss a sixth casino and allowing table games in the state. Delegate Frank Turner, a Howard County Democrat who chairs the subcommittee that deals with gambling, confirmed Mr. O'Malley’s plans Thursday. Mr. O'Malley, flanked by Speaker of the House Michael Busch and Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. will formally announce the session in Annapolis Friday morning. Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, is the only person with the power to call a special session in Maryland. On Wednesday, Mr. Busch,...

Metro officials on Saturday said excessive heat was the probable cause for a train derailment Friday in Prince George’s County. Investigators said a “heat kink” due to extreme high temperatures and direct exposure to sunlight likely caused the rails to expand, resulting in the derailment. The derailment was reported on the inbound stretch of the Green Line near the West Hyattsville Station around 4:45 p.m.

High temperatures caused a “heat kink” along a stretch of Metrorail track, officials said, closing a portion of Green Line service throughout the weekend and likely impacting the Monday morning rush hour. Service between Fort Totten and Prince George’s Plaza was suspended Saturday and Sunday while crews repaired the 1,000-foot section of track bent out of shape because of the hot weather. Metro officials announced Sunday night that service had restarted between the two stations, but trains were single-tracking.

ANNAPOLIS — Maryland can support a sixth casino and adding table games would more than make up for the revenue that competing casino operators could lose, representatives from a consulting firm told state lawmakers Tuesday. Representatives from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the state’s Department of Legislative Services presented a report Tuesday to the state’s Work Group to Consider Gaming Expansion - a panel of legislators and executive-branch officials charged with deciding whether the General Assembly should hold a special session next month to consider a bill legalizing table games and adding a casino In Prince George’s County. Opponents have argued that adding...

A consulting firm will present its findings Tuesday on the potential impact of expanded gambling in Maryland as lawmakers continue to discuss possible legislation to add table games and a sixth casino in the state. Representatives from PricewaterhouseCoopers are expected to testify at the second meeting of the state’s Work Group to Consider Gaming Expansion, a panel of lawmakers and executive-branch officials charged with deciding whether the General Assembly should pursue a gambling expansion bill at an expected special session next month. State officials say the panel’s recommendation will be largely based on the firm’s findings. Lawmakers have said the...

The Maryland General Assembly could consider legislation that would soften the impact of an April court ruling classifying pit bulls as “inherently dangerous” in the latest of several recent cases that have highlighted the checks and balances between the state’s legislative and judicial branches. A panel of Maryland lawmakers will meet later this month to study the possible effects of a state Court of Appeals decision that makes owners of pit bulls or pit-bull mixes liable if their dog attacks another person, even if the dog had no prior history of dangerous behavior. The assembly is expected to hold a...

After voting this week to raise income tax rates on the state’s highest earners, Maryland lawmakers aren’t ruling out more tax increases next year. The General Assembly passed legislation that will raise taxes on the top 14 percent of earners in an effort to balance the state’s $35.5 billion budget and cut half of Maryland’s $1 billion structural deficit, which measures expected revenue shortfalls in the future. Lawmakers could look to eliminate the remaining $500 million deficit over the next year by methods such as expanding gambling in the state, cutting spending or passing a long-debated tax increase to fund...

When Marylanders go to the polls in November, the most interesting races might not involve political candidates. The state’s voters will elect eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives and one U.S. senator, and will help choose a president, but an unprecedented slate of ballot initiatives is expected to set the state’s course on social issues, including same-sex marriage and illegal immigration, and potentially on gambling and congressional redistricting. This will be the first time in 20 years that a voter-petitioned referendum makes the state’s ballot, and as many as three could appear. All were initiated by Republicans who...

ANNAPOLIS — The General Assembly likely will return May 14 for a two- or three-day special session on a revenue package including income-tax increases and a shift of state-paid teacher-pension costs onto counties, state officials said Wednesday. Democratic leaders say the extra revenues are needed to bolster the state’s $35.4 billion spending plan and undo more than $500 million in cuts that went into effect when last-minute bickering caused the assembly to adjourn April 9 without passing two key revenue bills. The House and Senate still have slightly differing proposals to raise taxes, but leaders said they are making progress...

A new ruling makes it easier for anyone attacked by a pit bull or pit bull mix in Maryland to take legal action against the dog's owner. The Maryland Court of Appeals ruling declares pit bulls as a breed are "inherently dangerous," and the owner of a pit bull or a cross-bred pit that attacks is strictly liable for damages, as is any landlord who rents to a pit bull owner. The Maryland SPCA, which arranges adoptions for dogs that need homes, currently has three pit bulls under its care: a five-month-old Brutus is scheduled to be adopted this week,...

With the Maryland General Assembly looking toward two possible special sessions this year, some lawmakers are calling for an expanded agenda to address long-term transportation funding. Gov. Martin O'Malley and House leaders have made clear that they want to devote a May special session exclusively to passing new revenue and income-tax increases to supplement a $35.4-billion budget that currently includes more than $500 million in cuts because of the assembly’s failure to pass a revenue package during the regular session. Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, said Tuesday that is his only priority for a May special session. Other proposals would have...

ANNAPOLIS — Gov. Martin O'Malley emerged Tuesday from a much-anticipated meeting with the state’s two leading lawmakers and revealed that he is not only leaning toward calling a special session, but he might even call two of them. Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, said he hopes to bring the General Assembly back into session by mid-May so legislators can pass a set of tax and revenue increases to erase $512 million in cuts that were put into place when the assembly adjourned April 9. The governor said he wants to focus strictly on finances and hold off on debating a gambling...