Del. Gerron Levi leads charge against Baker & slots

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Earlier today former Prince George’s County Delegate Gerron Levi blasted Executive Rushern Baker and Senate President Mike Miller’s plans over the stalled state budget, the plan for a new casino, and the need for expensive special sessions at a cost of about $25,000 per day.

From Delegate Levi:

Former Delegate Gerron Levi (D-23A)

Thomas V. Mike Miller, Maryland’s President of the State Senate, demonstrated just how far gambling supporters will go to force a slots parlor in Fort Washington.  In a gross abuse of power, he blocked a compromise on Maryland’s budget in order to get what he wants — Maryland’s 6th casino in Prince George’s County. As a result, Prince George’s County now faces over $60 million in cuts, and counties, cities, schools, police departments, colleges and popular programs across the state are staring down the prospect of over $500 million in cuts.

You see, Mike Miller is the Master of the Senate, and one of the three most powerful men in the State of Maryland.  Having served in Annapolis for over 40 years, he is also a master of political brinksmanship.  A Special Session of the Maryland General Assembly will now have to be called at taxpayers expense to raise taxes and solve the state budget.  And, if all goes according to Mike Miller’s calculation, a Prince George’s slots parlor will be on the agenda.

Mike Miller’s Plan:  With enough time, the “hue and the cry” of teachers and college students and others across the state facing “doomsday” cuts will be so loud and the pressure on the Governor and the Speaker of the House so great, that one of them will have to blink and bend to His will and give him “something” on the Prince George’s slots deal.  All he needs is for one them to get behind his casino and round up the votes in the House of Delegates to pass it so that it goes to statewide referendum in November.  He knows that no Prince George’s politician wants this on the ballot when they have to run for reelection in 2014.  So, this is the year!  He has been waiting for this day for a long time — slots in Prince George’s within his grasp — and he has no intentions of retiring from the State Senate before he gets it; he has been planning it for over a decade.

Follow the Leader thinking and cold political calculation led a number of Prince George’s lawmakers to shudder their campaign opposition to slots in the county and follow Mike Miller’s model on abuse of power.

These are just a few examples:

• Cuts to the Education Trust Fund:  Two Prince George’s lawmakers introduced, the County Executive urged support, and  for bills (SB 892) that would cut 15% of slot revenues going education to go instead to profits for casino operators. Recall in 2007/2008 gambling was sold to statewide voters as a way to fund education.   5 Prince George’s Senators voted for that bill.

• Promised a “Local Vote” for Prince George’s and then took it back:  A County Council resolution sought to condition a county slots parlor on the will of Prince George’s voters.  When casino supporters realized they did not have the votes for a county slots parlor in the House of Delegates they dropped that “local vote” provision, leaving it to voters statewide to decide for Prince George’s County.  5 Prince George’s Senators voted for that bill.

• Baker’s Exaggerated Revenue Numbers:  While Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker claims the county will win $69 million in revenue from his slots parlor, he fails to mention that the state has yet to reap the revenue promised in 2008 from the existing slots program.  In fact, The Maryland State Lottery Agency reported that the state is spending $71.5 million per year to provide slot machines to three casinos — that is $10 million more than the  leasing cost projected for all 5 casinos in the coming year.

• End-Run Around Prince George’s Leaders:  The customary rule is this: the will of the Prince George’s Delegation is communicated to the Speaker of House or other House leaders after a discussion among delegates and either a vote of the delegation or a decision to send a delegation letter from the Chairwoman.  At the request of County Executive Rushern Baker, several delegates decided instead to send their own “group letter” to House leadership to express “the will” of the delegation.  12 state delegates signed that letter.

• The customary rule is this:  the will of the Prince George’s County Council on legislation is communicated to leaders in Annapolis after a discussion of the Council and a vote or a Council letter from the Council Chairwoman.   At the request of the County Executive and Senate President, several County Council Members decided instead to send their own “group letter” to Annapolis to express “the will” of the County County.  6 County Council Members signed that letter.

Organizations Opposing A Casino in  Prince George’s County:     1.   Coalition of Central Prince George’s County Community Organizations 2.    Indian Head Highway Area Action Coalition (IHHAAC) 3.    National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) 4.    Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) 5.    Collective Empowerment Group (CEG) 6.    Prince George’s County PTA Council 7.    Progressive Cheverly 8.    Mission of Love 9.    Men Aiming Higher 10.   Kettering Civic Federation 11.   Executive Committee, Hillcrest-Marlow Heights Civic Association 12.   Suitland Action Team 13.   Mission Baptist Ministers Conference 14.   Original Free Will Baptist Conference 15.   Fairfield Knolls Civic Association 16.   Helping Hand Club 17.   Concerned Citizens of Seabrook Park Estates 18.   Forestville Park Homeowners Association 19.   District III Coffee Club 20.   Page After Page 21.   Integrated Processing Labs 22.   Family, Faith, and Future 23.   Veteran’s Advocacy Group 24.   Former Prince George’s County Councilman Thomas Dernoga 25.   Former Maryland State Delegate Gerron S. Levi 26.   Former Prince George’s County School Board Member Patricia Fletcher 27.   Lewisdale Citizens Association 28.   Community of Hope AME Church 29.   First Baptist Church of Highland Park 30.   Jerusalem AM.E. Church 31.   Greater Mt. Nebo AME Church 32.   Bride of Christ Church 33.   New Creation AME Church 34.   Cornerstone AME Church 35.   Mt. Victory Baptist Church 36.   Triumphant Church 37.   New Hope Baptist Church 38.   Christ Kingdom Church 39.   Wayman Memorial AME Church 40.   United By Faith Christian Church 41.   Solid Rock Missionary Baptist Church 42.   Marlboro Meadows Baptist Church 43.   Embry AME Church 44.   Antioch Baptist Church – Clinton 45.   Shalom Ministries Christian Center 46.   The Sanctuary at Kingdom Square 47.   Judah Temple AME Zion Church 48.   Higher Place of Praise Ministries 49.   New Community Church of God in Christ 50.   Bethel Deliverance Outreach Church 51.   Christ Missionary Baptist Church 52.   Disciples of Christ Christian Church 53.   Carolina Missionary Baptist Church 54.   Mt. Jezreel Baptist Church 55.   Union Bethel AME Church 56.   Mt. Enon Missionary Baptist Church 57.   Ebenezer AME Church 58.   New Vision Baptist Church 59.   Gethsemane AME Church 60.    New Liberation AME Church 61.    Millwood-Waterford Citizens Association 62.    Hunter Memorial Church 63.    South Potomac Citizens Association 64.    Wilburn Civic Association 65.    Central Civic Association (Wilburn Community) 66.    Maryland Family Alliance 67.    Greater Accokeek Civic Association 68.    Laurel Clergy Association 69.    Bethany Community Church 69.    New Chapel Baptist Church 70.    Jericho City of Priaise 71.    Community of Hope AME Church 72.    Reid Temple AME Church (North) 73.    From The Heart Church Ministries 74.    Glenn Dale Citizens’ Association 75.    New Revival Kingdom Church Follow The Real Prince George’s on Facebook and Twitter. Also get the latest in your inbox by subscribing on the right side of the page.

O’Malley announces intention for one, maybe two special sessions

Today Governor Martin O’Malley announced that he had reached an agreement with the Speaker of the House and Senate President for a special session to deal with the revenue package for the budget before May 27th, but left open the door he would call another special session later in the summer to resolve the issue of gambling. According to one report from the Department of Legislative Services, a special session could cost the state as much as $25,000 per day. The one planned for May is expected to last no more than three days.

Stay tuned for more information.

Sen. Muse comes out against casino in special session

State Senator C. Anthony Muse today released the following editorial opposing consideration of a new billion dollar casino during the expected special session. The opposition from Muse for consideration is interesting as he represents the area that both potential sites, National Harbor and Roscroft, are located.

“The Only Gaming During a Special Session Should be Doubling Down on the People’s Business”

 

Whether you support casinos in Maryland or not, one thing is certain, the proposed expansion of gaming will have no direct impact on the fiscal year 2013 budget.  In fact, projected revenues from a proposed casino in Prince George’s County would not be realized for nearly six years, at best; and projected revenues from table games are a few years off as well. Further, the expansion of gaming hinges on the voters of Maryland agreeing to support the referendum, which some may say is likely, but there are no guarantees.  For these reasons, and many others, it seems irrational and irresponsible to tie the ability of the General Assembly to pass a responsible budget for this year to the condition that we send a question to referendum that may fail.  This is a gamble that I don’t believe the state should take.

Governor Martin O’Malley was right when he said, “Our republic was not built on gambling gimmicks, bingo games or bake sales.”  I believe that our republic was built on intellect, courage and humanity; and the future of our republic depends on brave men and women standing for the greater good and putting personal interests aside to get a job done for the citizens of Maryland. 

We ended this session with the people’s business unfinished, because the special interest of gaming dominated the closing days of the General Assembly.  As a result, Maryland must cut $512 million from education, public safety and other services.  In addition, tuition rates will increase at state universities, making higher education less affordable for our young people.  My home county, Prince George’s, will likely see a $65 million reduction in state aid, resulting in cuts to k-12 education, public safety and other services.

I understand that Senate President Mike Miller and County Executive Rushern Baker have a desire to bring slot machines and table games to Prince George’s County, but I believe it is mutually exclusive from this year’s budget and should be dealt with during the course of the regular session next year.   I don’t believe it is worth gambling with the important issues that we as public servants must face today.  Right now, the Prince George’s County Public School System ranks 24th of 24 in the state, yet we are now facing devastating cuts to our education system because we could not pass a responsible budget.  Just a couple of weekends ago, there were five killings and four shootings in Prince George’s, yet we are now risking cuts to public safety.  Conditioning this year’s budget on gaming is at best poor judgment, or at worse one of the greatest abuses of power that this state has ever seen.

The state of Maryland is facing a structural deficit, and yet we allowed one special interest to potentially cost taxpayers additional money to bring the General Assembly back into session to pass the budget that should have been and could have been passed in the 90 days the people have allotted for us.  If we allow gaming to play a role during a special session, shame on us!  We would be sending a message to the world that Maryland can be bought and bossed by special gaming interests, and that we are willing to sacrifice education, healthcare, public safety and transportation for the promise of revenues generated by slot machines and table games.  I believe the people of Maryland deserve better of us.  Let’s not gamble with their future.

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O’Malley blast GOP, Senate and PG Democrats over budget, PG Young Dems hit back

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Yesterday Governor Martin O’Malley took to this campaign email to blast members of the GOP for cheering the cuts the doomsday budget lays out:

Ten days ago, Democrats in the Maryland General Assembly failed to reach a consensus on a budget to move Maryland forward.  Now, there is more work to do.

As Democrats, we know we need to come together to protect our investments in public education, affordable college and public safety — and we will come back to complete this important work.

The failure to pass a budget to move Maryland forward is bad enough, but the Republican reaction is even worse. When Republicans in Annapolis learned that the inaction by the Maryland General Assembly would result in more than $500 million in cuts to public education, public safety and social services, they cheered.

They cheered about the possibility of turning back Maryland’s progress over the past six years.

They cheered for cuts that will harm every school in every county.

They cheered for cuts that will harm every student in every classroom, every library, and every local police department.

They cheered for cuts that will raise tuition on every Maryland college student, make our community colleges less affordable and reduce funding for life-saving and innovative research and development.

For all of this, they cheered.

After blasting the GOP for cheering the cuts, the governor tried to play the elder statesman in Annapolis by imploring his party leaders to come together on a deal.

If there is ever a time to come together as Democrats, it is now. You and I both know that a modern economy requires modern investments, by all of us, for all of us.

Governor O’Malley has received a lot of bad press following the legislatures failure to reach a budget deal. Many blame his national ambitions as a reason the budget package wasn’t passed. Now he is fighting back.

Earlier today O’Malley took to twitter to blast Senate Democrats focus on gambling and that didn’t sit well with the Prince George’s County Young Democrats. See the governor’s tweets below and then the PGCYD response that follows.

Earlier this week Senate President Mike Miller, who represents part of Prince George’s, sent a two page letter to members of his chamber hitting back at efforts to blame him and County Executive Rushern Baker for pushing the National Harbor Casino project as the cause of the budget deadlock. With the special session likely weeks away, both sides of this inter-party struggle seem far apart.

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Students and education officials put pressure on for special legislative session

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One the setbacks to the General Assembly not reaching a deal on the revenue package (taxes) that will fund the spending plan is the cuts to public education. This week students at the University of Maryland, who face the possibility of a 10% increase in tuition, plan to take to the public square at College Park in protest demanding Governor Martin O’Malley call a special session to address the unfinished business. In addition PGCPS Superintendent Hite also is sounding the alarm.

In a statement posted to his blog and emailed to community stakeholders, Hite writes: ” Because the General Assembly session ended without the approval of the Fiscal Year 2013 budget submitted by Governor Martin O’Malley, our school system is now faced with an additional $51 million in cuts. Needless to say, this would have a substantial impact on our students, teachers, staff and schools.” A member of the Prince George’s County House Delegation to the House of Delegates called Dr. Hite’s estimate “conservative” and warned the cuts could be far more than that. The superintendent also wrote that he and the members of the board have already written to the governor, senate president, and speaker of the house to request they reconvene to solve the problem and encouraged citizens to do the same.

Here are the details of the University of Maryland event:

Rally on the Mall- Prevent 10% Tuition Increases!

Thursday, April 19th @3:00PM

McKeldin Library, University of Maryland

McKeldin Library, College Park, MD 20742

As you may have heard by now, the Maryland General Assembly failed to fully fund the operating budget, which means as of now the so called “Doomsday Budget” goes into effect. The “Doomsday Budget” will have devastating affects on our university, as the University System of Maryland could face cuts up to $50 million.

These cuts will mean that more of the burden will fall on students next year and there will likely be at least ten percent tuition increases for the incoming fall semester.

Now, is the time for action! Governor O’Malley still has the option to call a special session to raise the revenues to offset the cuts to the university. We will rally on the mall (in front of Testudo) and urge legislators in Annapolis to get their act together and protect higher education.

Balancing the budget on the backs of students is not acceptable. We need to have a special session, so that students that are struggling to get by will not be unduly burdened by petty politics.

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Race Relations in PGC, a townhall with State’s Attorney Alsobrooks

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Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Angela Alsobrooks is the latest elected official to get involved in the Trayvon Martin case and she is doing so with a town hall. What are they going to talk about? Race relations.

From Angela-

 

Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela Alsobrooks

RACE RELATIONS and the PUBLIC SAFETY COMMUNITY

Dear Friends,

I would like to invite you to attend a panel discussion I am hosting on, “Race Relations and the Public Safety Community” on Thursday, April 26th from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Charles Herbert Flowers High School.

In the wake of the Trayvon Martin case in Florida, I think we have an opportunity to address an issue that has long been a challenge in our county. I have heard from you loud and clear and I am very concerned about the divide that sometimes exists between our public safety team and those we serve. I know we must close this gap, but we cannot succeed without transparency and an honest dialog with you.

I will be joined on this panel by Police Chief Mark Magaw, Deputy Police Chief Craig Howard, Delegate Joseline Pena-Melnyk, Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo, Reverend Tony Lee and a representative from the Sheriff’s Office.

Michael Higginbotham, Dean of the University of Baltimore’s School of Law, has agreed to moderate this panel.  In addition to his teaching in the area of race and the  law, he has published several books and numerous articles concerning this same subject matter. I believe his expertise in this area will allow him to ask poignant questions and lead a spirited discussion that will begin the process of addressing the issues we face.

This event will be the kickoff to a series of smaller listening sessions we are going to host across the county in the coming months. The flyer below has all the details for this great event. I look forward to seeing you on April 26th.

Thank you.

Angela Alsobrooks

State’s Attorney

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The Deltas present annual talk on economic development w/ county top brass

A group of Deltas in Prince George’s County will present their annual town hall meeting on economic development in the county at Eleanor Roosevelt High School with many of the top brass from the county government.

___________________________________________

The Prince George’s County Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta will host its 4th Annual County-wide Town Hall meeting, “Prince George’s County: Developing for the 21st Century ” on Saturday, April 21, 2012 from 4-7 pm at Eleanor Roosevelt H.S. in Greenbelt, MD.

The event will be moderated by Molette Green, WHUR-FM news anchor and we will welcome the following panelists to take part in our dialogue:
Councilman Mel Franklin (D-9) – Prince George’s County Council; Chair of the Planning, Zoning and Economic Development Committee (PZED)
Carla Reid – Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Economic Development and Public Infrastructure, Office of the County Executive, Prince George’s County
Gwen McCall – Executive Director, Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation
Roland Jones – Executive Director, Prince George’s County Minority Business Development Division

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Should the legislature avoid casinos in special session?

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Governor Martin O’Malley has said he will not call a special session of the General Assembly, which some see as necessary, until the Speaker of the House of Delegates Mike Busch and Senate President Mike Miller come to an agreement on what will be discussed and passed. Issue number one on the agenda of both Governor O’Malley and Speaker Busch is the tax package required to accompany the budget in order to prevent a wave of deep cuts to spending that will hit education the hardest. However Senate President Mike Miller and Prince George’s Executive Rushern Baker are pushing for the legislation to build a casino at National Harbor to be included as well. Disagreement over the casino legislation is being blamed for holding up the budget and many people, including supporters of the casino like Del. Justin Ross, say they aren’t sure it should be dealt with in the special session.

We want to know what you think.

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Pr. George’s House Delegation Chair statement on legislative session

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Prince George’s House Delegation Report

Delegate Melony G. Griffith, Chair

 

Members are awaiting word whether the legislature will re-convene in a special session or face a “Doomsday Budget” following last night’s uncertain end to the 90-day 2012 Maryland General Assembly Session, Delegation Chair Delegate Melony G. Griffith said.

 

“We are disappointed that our work requires the possibility of more time to resolve these key pieces of legislation,” Griffith said. “I know we all would have preferred to resolve this by the deadline.”

 

Amid debates over whether to allow casino gaming in Prince George’s County and negotiations over how to fund the state’s budget going down to midnight, the delegation was divided this session. Members met in March to be briefed on one of several late gaming proposals, Senate Bill 892, but no formal position was taken.

 

With the gaming bill stalled, the two chambers passed the state’s budget by midnight. But several key pieces of the budget concerning taxes and other revenues for the state failed to pass, including a proposal that set the amount of teacher pension costs to be shared with counties, along with revenue to local jurisdictions to smooth the transition.

 

It is now up to Gov. Martin O’Malley to decide whether to call a special session before the July 1 start of the fiscal year, or to allow a previous alternative “doomsday budget” with $500 million in cuts to education, colleges, grants and other state funding to take effect.

 

Before Sine Die, Prince George’s County’s 23 delegates passed 17 bills through the House and Senate, including a proposal by County Executive Rushern L. Baker III for tax incentives to lure new companies and growth to the county, a commission to advocate for adults with developmental disabilities and

a requirement for all county public schools to recycle.

 

The bills were among 34 the delegation examined during the 90-day session that ended Monday. In addition to their normal legislative duties, the 23-member delegation also collaborates on state-level laws that regulate County Affairs, Law Enforcement, and its two bi-county agencies, the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.

 

Other bills debated by the delegation this year included a proposal that would have prohibited home alcohol delivery in the county and a proposal to allow charging a 5-cent tax on plastic bags that passed the delegation but did not get sufficient committee votes to pass on to the full House of Delegates.

 

“I’m pleased with the way our delegation united in a common understanding that we must invest in our future,” Griffith said. “But among our colleagues, our own members and our citizens, there is honest disagreement about whether a casino is a good investment for Prince George’s County.”

 

The 17 delegation bills passed this year included House Bill 898, which authorizes Prince George’s County to implement a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) program to attract companies and investors. The bill empowers the county to offer reductions in property taxes over the next five years for developments that bring at least 100 jobs to the county in select areas.

 

The legislation was one of the top legislative priorities this year for County Executive Baker, who worked with the delegates to refine the proposal.

 

Other bills passed by both the delegation and legislature include:

 

• House Bill 803: Pre-authorizing the Prince George’s County School Board to test a year-round school program in the county in the future.

 

• House Bill 805: Requiring Prince George’s County Public Schools to implement a recycling program at all facilities.

 

• House Bill 897: Allowing residents over the age of 62 to pay their county property tax bill in up to six installments.

 

• House Bill 903: Creating a citizens advisory committee to study and work with state officials on behalf of adults with developmental disabilities.

 

A complete list of all legislation and its current status is available on the county delegation website at www.princegeorgeshousedelegation.com

 

All bills still require the signature of Gov. Martin O’Malley to become law.

 

 

Contact:

Prince George’s County House Delegation

301-858-3074

Pg2@mlis.state.md.us

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Prince George’s Young Republicans host major urban conservative conference

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The Prince George’s County Young Republicans are gearing up for a major conference in Washington, DC that they believe will help empower conservatives to win in urban areas. The Choosing the Future Conference is being built as an urban conservative conference and it just might be worth attending.The list of speakers includes a few top names such as:

Alfonso Aguilar
Executive Director of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles and former Chief of the U.S. Office of Citizenship

Harry C. Alford
Founder/CEO of the National Black Chamber of Commerce

Dr. Alveda King
Civil-Rights Activist and Former Member of the Georgia House of Representatives

and more…

The conference will take place at the Kellogg Conference Hotel near the New York Avenue Metro Station. More information on the speakers and details are on their website at http://choosingthefuture.org/.

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