Annapolis

ANNAPOLIS - One member of the Washington County Delegation to the Maryland General Assembly raised doubts last week about forcing the Washington County Commissioners to put more money toward their $52.3 million water and sewer debt. "We have different responsibilities as state lawmakers. Let them do their job and let us do our job," said Del. Joseph R. Bartlett, R-Frederick/Washington. A short time later in the meeting between state and county elected officials, someone accidentally referred to Del. Christopher B. Shank, the debt plan's primary author, as "Commissioner Shank.

ANNAPOLIS - A meeting of the Governor's Intergovernmental Commission for Agriculture will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Maryland Department of Agriculture headquarters, Lower Level Conference Room, 50 Harry S. Truman Parkway in Annapolis. The agenda will include an update on 2010 Farmers Markets legislation, existing food safety regulations, implementation of the Maryland Winery Modernization Act and information on wildlife management programs. The Governor's Intergovernmental Commission for Agriculture was established in 2006 to "promote the economic profitability of agriculture in the state by ensuring that all appropriate state agencies work in a cooperative, coordinated manner with local government and industry groups in planning, implementing, overseeing and evaluating intergovernmental initiatives related to agricultural affairs of the state.

A lobbying group from Washington County spent Wednesday in Annapolis, promoting its legislative agenda with state officials. The coalition is composed of government and community advocates who jointly pursue issues of local importance during the annual 90-day Maryland General Assembly session. This year's agenda includes road projects on Eastern Boulevard and U.S. 340 at Keep Tryst Road, University System of Maryland at Hagerstown funding and a possible bio-tech/high-tech business park on the Mount Aetna Farms property near Hagerstown Community College.

Stand-up comedian Sam Levenson said his father taught him to laugh at his own jokes, because “you should never depend on strangers.” Nor can we depend on strangers in Annapolis to, on their own, discover what Washington County is about. That's why the trade fair named “Washington County: We Mean Business!” held in the state capital earlier this month was so important for our development and for our future. A dozen businesses from across the county, from manufacturing to technology to agriculture, were introduced to lawmakers and state decision-makers at a reception sponsored by a local lobbying coalition, showing us in a strong light and putting us on the radar of those who otherwise might not pay us any mind.

Annapolis notes ANNAPOLIS - In addition to its tax money, Washington County made a significant contribution to the new $24.4 million Thomas V. Mike Miller Senate Office Building dedicated last week. The 275,000 bricks used in the building were designed and manufactured at Cushwa Brick in Williamsport, said Sen. Donald F. Munson, R-Washington. Munson rose on the Senate floor to note Cushwa's workmanship as well as the company's ties to the Maryland Senate. Two predecessors to Munson's seat were Patricia Cushwa and her husband, the late Victor Cushwa.

Hagerstown Tea Party supporters gathered at the Beaver Creek Country Club on Thursday night to hear Del. Neil C. Parrott, R-Washington, talk about the recently concluded session of the Maryland General Assembly and a drive to collect petitions to challenge the repeal of the death penalty through a referendum in the 2014 elections. Parrott said at the gathering - a general meeting of the Hagerstown Tea Party attended by about 20 people - that he was extremely disappointed with passage of measures such as the increase in the state gasoline tax and the gun-control bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Martin O'Malley on Thursday.

Students from St. Mary Catholic School in Hagerstown traveled to Annapolis recently to visit the offices of the Washington County delegation to the Maryland General Assembly. It was a learning experience and a day very well spent for the students. Patricia Jones and Mo Tedeschi accompanied the students to Annapolis.

Maryland The Maryland General Assembly's 2013 session began Jan. 9 and ends April 8. Information about the General Assembly, including the status of bills, can be found at http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/ Sen. George C. Edwards R-Allegany/Garrett/Washington Budget and Taxation Committee District 1 Local office: 13 Canal St., Room 304, Cumberland, MD 21502 Phone: 301-722-4780 Annapolis office: James Senate Office...

On Feb. 6, the 11th- and 12th-grade government students from Grace Academy made a visit to the Maryland state capital in Annapolis. The students sat in the gallery of the delegate chamber during the legislative session, toured the governor's mansion, toured the state Capitol building, and met with Del. LeRoy Myers and Del. Andrew Serafini. They also toured the U.S. Naval Academy.

Top law enforcement officials from Washington County testified Thursday in support of a bill that would give authority to the sheriff to appoint municipal law enforcement officers as special sheriff's deputies. Thursday's hearing for House Bill 559 was at the House Environmental Matters Committee and was attended by Sheriff Douglas W. Mullendore, Hagerstown Police Chief Mark Holtzman and Smithsburg Police Chief George Knight. A senate committee had a similar hearing for a cross-filed version of the bill in February.

House panel backs online learning bill An amended version of a bill that would require the Maryland Advisory Council for Virtual Learning to study the feasibility of a compulsory online course in high schools or a course combining digital content with traditional classroom learning has received a positive vote from the House Ways and Means Committee. The bill was filed in the Senate by Sen. Christopher B. Shank, R-Washington, and in the House of Delegates by Del. Andrew A. Serafini, R-Washington.

Image isn't everything - tone matters, too. There are times for soapboxes and times for restraint. We have been critical of the Washington County legislative delegation in the past for seeming to pick a fight with the Democratic leadership in Annapolis on every issue and at every turn. Whether or not the leadership deserved the scoldings is beside the point. The cold fact is that constant thorns in the side are repaid in kind. That said, we believe the delegation deserves credit for its collective reaction to Gov. Martin O'Malley's state budget presentation.

Members of the Washington County Community Coalition met with legislators in the state capital Wednesday as part of an effort to give the county more visibility among lawmakers. The lobbying coalition, which includes the county government and the City of Hagerstown, also hosted a reception Wednesday evening that showcased businesses and organizations from the county. But before the reception, which featured cheese from Palmyra Farm, a Hagerstown business, and wine from Red Heifer Winery, located in Smithsburg, scores of coalition members trooped down the alleys of the Maryland State House, the Senate and House buildings as they met with legislators.

Ah, what a blast from the past: Capital punishment, gun bans, container taxes - legislation that hadn't been seriously heard from in Annapolis for 20 years. Verily, those were issues before the General Assembly when I was covering the lawmaking fun back in the early '90s. So why and how has the liberal-issue band gotten back together after all these years? Part of it almost has an administrative flavor - unfinished liberal business that's been overlooked like an unwashed sock all these many years.

Clayton Wilcox, the superintendent for Washington County Public Schools, asked the state Board of Public Works Wednesday to restore about $2 million in school construction money that was requested by the school district, but was not part of the proposed capital budget announced by Gov. Martin O'Malley last week. The capital budget for fiscal year 2014 sets aside $6.5 million for school construction in Washington County, and the district had requested about $9 million. The meeting at the governor's office is an annual ritual, where school district officials from around the state ask the board for school construction money that has been requested but not fully allocated.