Back in the Community
McCray Messenger
April 2017
The final day of the 2017 legislative session has passed, which marks the end of my third year as your state delegate. It has been both an honor and a privilege to represent you in Annapolis, brining your voice to our state legislature. Now that this session has concluded I have returned to the community and I continue to work toward the first promise I made to you—to listen. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you in Annapolis. This blog will provide a quick recap of some of the progress we made during this past legislative session and a few updates about our district.
2017 Maryland General Assembly Summary
My Bills
Providing Our Workers Education and Readiness (POWER) Act (House Bill 467): Strengthens Maryland’s workforce by requiring recipients of one million dollars ($1,000,000) or more from the State Capital budget who appropriate $500,000 or more to a general contractor or sub-contractor for construction services to either utilize apprentices registered with the Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation (DLLR), make payments to a Maryland registered apprenticeship program, or make payments to the Maryland Apprenticeship Training Fund.
The State of Maryland currently appropriates 163 capital grants valued at $1,000,000 or more per grant. Those 163 grants total nearly a half-billion dollars — $488,789,000 to be exact. Many of these capital projects neither hold contractors or sub-contractors accountable to their workforce nor utilize apprenticeship standards. Maryland’s workforce and taxpayers deserve both. The POWER Act ensures that the monies already appropriated by the State of Maryland will work more efficiently and effectively by creating accountability requirements.
Further, by expanding the number of projects that use registered apprentices we will add structure for both employers and employees in the trades. Under current law, DLLR and the Department of Labor both provide guidelines and standards that must be met. Standards which promote skills development, worker protection, and labor standards that safeguard the welfare of participating apprentices. This system creates a better work environment for all parties involved.
Transparency for School Construction Funding (House Bill 76): Facilitates transparency by making public the allocation of school construction funding. The long-run goal is to ensure that each dollar is spent in an equitable way. This bill will require the school system to score the condition of roofs, windows, heating, and all other major components of each school building and to make their findings public.
Residency Requirements (House Bill 167): Returns the authority to local jurisdictions to determine whether residency requirements for local government employees who serve in a supervisory capacity can be an effective policy tool or not. Current law prevents local governments from making that decision. This bill, if signed, will return discretion over this issue back to local governments.
Modernized Ground Rent (House Bill 44): Gives ground rent holders the opportunity to provide their email address and phone number information on ground rent registration forms. Providing these alternate modes of communication will help to modernize the administration of ground rents in the City of Baltimore and beyond.
Other Impactful Legislation
Clean Energy Act: Increases the state’s renewable energy goals to 25% by 2020 and, in the process, creates thousands of jobs across the wind and solar energy sectors. Maryland has more than 170 solar companies and over 4,000 solar energy jobs paying nearly $21 an hour. These increased renewable energy standards will allow 1,300 more megawatts of renewable energy, which will reduce carbon emissions equal to 563,000 passenger vehicles in the state. The General Assembly overrode Governor Hogan’s veto to enact this legislation.
Paid Sick Leave (House Bill 1): Removes the draconian choice to either go to work sick or send an ill child to school, or stay home and sacrifice essential income – or potentially lose employment – for over 693,000 Marylanders. This bill allows employees to earn up to 5 days of sick leave; exempting seasonal businesses and employers who already offer comparable benefits.
Protecting Planned Parenthood: Makes Maryland the first state in the nation to guarantee continued funding for vital family planning and women’s health services at Planned Parenthood if the Federal Government defunds their clinics. Over 25,000 Marylanders rely on Planned Parenthood clinics every year for healthcare.
Prescription Drug Price Gouging Prevention (House Bill 631): Authorizes the Attorney General Brian Frosh to prevent prescription drug price gouging of generic drugs by facilitating investigations into why the price of certain drugs increase and by forcing pharmaceutical companies to the table to justify those increases.
Limiting Public School Testing (House Bill 461): Requires the State Board of Education to limit the amount of time for Federal, State, and local assessments for each grade to 2% of instructional hours, in order to give students the opportunity to learn in new and innovative ways. The bill also requires each school district to set up a committee to monitor the jurisdiction’s assessment programs. The goal is to move away from “teaching to the test” and move toward using assessments as a true measure of what a student learns.
Fracking Ban (House Bill 1325): Creates an outright ban on fracking in Maryland. This bipartisan legislation will protect public health and drinking water access across the State.
Keeping My Promise to Listen
I campaigned on the promise to first and foremost listen and be responsive your concerns. One way in which I keep that promise is to attend community association meetings. In the two weeks since the end of session I have attended 5 such meetings, including in Mount Vernon, McElderry Park, Parkside, Darley Park, and North Harford. I very much look forward to continuing to visit the other communities around our district.
Around the District
I was honored to speak at the Collective PAC Fundraiser in Baltimore. The Collective Political Action Committee is an organization whose goal is to ensure equal and equitable representation of the Black community in all local, State, and federal government. You can find more information about the Collective PAC here.
Recently, the Council of State Governments featured the effort to improve apprenticeship opportunities in our State. Specifically, they focused on the POWER Act, which successfully passed the General Assembly. You can find the article here.
Finally, I was given the opportunity to speak to 8th and 6th graders at KIPP Baltimore. I extend a gracious thank you to Devin Rosenberger for giving me the opportunity to share with the students a little about the things their government does for them.
Listening. Learning. Leading.
Cory McCray
Delegate, 45th Legislative District
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