Decisions about the state budget are always important, but this year they dominated the entire Maryland General Assembly session as policymakers worked to address a significant budget deficit. A nearly $3 billion shortfall at the beginning of the year continued to grow as the effects of federal layoffs and funding cuts began to rock the region’s economy.

Host Kevin Slayton chats with Maryland Center on Economic Policy Research Analyst Christopher Meyer and Rachel London, Executive Director of the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council about how Gov. Wes Moore and the legislature addressed these challenges, and what that means for Maryland families and communities as the new budget year begins this month.

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This General Assembly session, Maryland legislators have been working through addressing a $3 billion budget deficit. Earlier this legislative session, Kevin Slayton interviewed several legislators who serve on the budget committees about their approach to these decisions and how they try to represent their communities' needs in the budget process.

Guests:

• Delegate Jazz Lewis Majority Whip and Chair of the Public Safety and Administration Subcommittee on the House Appropriations Committee
• Senator Cory McCray, Chair of the Health and Human Services Subcommittee of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee
• Delegate Gabriel Acevero, Vice Chair of the Legislative Latino Caucus and member of the House Appropriations Committee

Podcast archives and resource links: ⁠⁠⁠https://mdeconomy.org/news-events/podcast/ ⁠⁠⁠

Support the show: ⁠⁠⁠mdeconomy.org/donate⁠⁠⁠

Join the Maryland Center on Economic Policy email list at mdeconomy.org

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One of the most important responsibilities of our state and local governments is to provide an education for our kids to set them up for success. In 2021, the Maryland General Assembly passed a landmark education reform and funding bill known as the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, designed to address chronic under-funding of schools in some communities and make Maryland schools some of the best in the world. This legislation was the result of years of study and planning by a commission of education experts.

This year, as the state faces a historic budget deficit, policymakers are talking about slowing down and scaling back some of the goals of the Blueprint in order to reduce costs. Host Kevin Slayton talks to two dedicated education experts and advocates about how the proposed changes to the Blueprint plan could affect students and families across the state: Riya Gupta, Interim Executive Director of Strong Schools Maryland, and Liz Zogby, a special education advocate and co-chair of the Maryland Down Syndrome Coalition.

Podcast archives and resource links: ⁠⁠https://mdeconomy.org/news-events/podcast/ ⁠⁠

Support the show: ⁠⁠mdeconomy.org/donate⁠⁠

Join the Maryland Center on Economic Policy email list at mdeconomy.org

Follow us on social media @mdeconomy on ⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠| ⁠⁠Bluesky ⁠⁠|⁠⁠ Threads⁠