Thanks to Jan Travers and Pam Enrico for the following information.
Maryland Legislative Update: April 2017
Below are some of the items enacted by the Maryland Legislature during the recent session.
They have been selected with the interests of retired educators in mind and each topic has a hyperlink that will access a page relative to the current issue.
1. Protect Our Schools Act: Sets parameters for the Maryland Department of Education and school board in implementing the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) which balance test scores with opportunity indicators to provide a fuller picture of student achievement. Also, prevents the state from privatizing lower-performing schools.
2. Maryland Health Insurance Coverage Protection Act: Establishes a commission to monitor any federal changes to healthcare and provide recommendations to the state, and to local municipalities when appropriate, to mitigate those changes.
3. Continuity of Care: Ensures the continued funding of the services provided through Planned Parenthood throughout the state, regardless of changes made in federal funding.
4. Calculation of Energy Efficiency Cost-Effectiveness: Extends the EmPower Maryland Initiative of 2008, requiring the state’s top five electric utilities to provide their customers with energy-efficiency programs and services. The goal is to cut Maryland energy consumption by 2% per year.
5. Budget Reconciliation Act: The General Assembly passed a $1.1 billion budget, which included a revision on the adoption of new school construction moving the authority out of the Public Works Department. The new budget also includes $10 million allocated for combating Maryland’s opioid abuse epidemic.
6. Study Universal Access to Prekindergarten: Establishes a working group to study the feasibility of offering universal access to prekindergarten for 4-year-olds throughout the state. The work group is tasked with creating and presenting an implementation plan to the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education by September 1, 2017.
7. Public Integrity Act: Tightens Maryland Ethics laws, increasing financial disclosure requirements and expanding the definition of what constitutes a conflict of interest for public officials.