Home Page Survey Site Questions Contact Us Printer Version
Residents Business Visitors Government Employment Online Services Newsroom

Legislative Affairs Home

County Executive Welcome

Legislative Agendas

Legislative Reports

Contact Information

Information for the
Maryland General Assembly

Legislative Agenda, 2004

Download the entire agenda, available here as an Adobe PDF.
Click to view the Prince George's County 90-Day Legislative Report (PDF)

	Fully Fund the State's Public Education Commitment (Thornton Commission and School Construction Aid) The county will work to ensure the General Assembly fulfills its commitment for increased funding for education and school construction. In 2002, the Maryland General Assembly made a historic commitment to funding public education in Maryland. The Bridge to Excellence Law, when fully implemented, will substantially increase the state's financial commitment to Prince George's County public schools. This legislative decision was the result of two years of study by a state commission and the recognition that the state constitution requires the state to provide every child with an adequate education. As a result, Prince George’s County will be allocated more than $600 million during the next fiscal year. There is no better investment than providing quality public education to our children.

	Insist on Additional Funding for Prince George's Hospital Center Since 1996, the state provided $169 million for capital improvement projects to Baltimore's hospitals, but only $13 million was allocated to hospitals in Prince George's County. The Prince George's County Hospital Center is among the largest providers of health services for the Medicaid, Medicare and uncompensated care population in the region. The core problem faced by the hospital is that it is the primary caregiver for the county's 90,000 people without health insurance. Prince George's County has committed $30 million to keep the hospital operational while providing optimal care to its patients. The state should be a full partner in shouldering this burden. Additionally, the state should adopt a plan that will guarantee quality, affordable health insurance for all residents, which will have a profound and positive effect on Prince George's Hospital Center.

	Protect State Aid to Local Governments It is unfair for the state to cut taxes over five years and balance its budget on the county. Local jurisdictions have had to impose new taxes and fees in order to balance their own budgets. The state should look to reforming its antiquated system of taxation to balance its books. Corporate tax loopholes and inequities in the application of the sales tax need to be addressed before cutting basic county services such as police protection, health and human services and transportation projects.

	Expansion of Gambling Should Not Be the Only Solution The state should not gamble on its most valuable resource: the education and the future of its children. Prince George's County already bears the largest brunt of state-sanctioned gambling through the state lottery. Revenues from slot machines alone are not sufficient to pay for state education mandates, nor should the state leave the education of our children to chance. Prince George's County will work to ensure the effects of state gambling do not disproportionately impact our communities.

	Secure Funding for Public Safety When it comes to public safety, Prince George's County is in a very unique situation because of its shared border with the District of Columbia, and its location between two cities with high rates of violent crime. We will continue to invest adequate resources to improve crime prevention methods and remove illegal weapons from our communities. Prince George's County will work to dedicate specific revenues from fines and penalties collected to address local public safety needs.

	Invest in Revitalization and Economic Development Efforts Both the Suitland Manor revitalization project and the Gateway Arts Initiative in Hyattsville, Mount Rainier, Brentwood and North Brentwood are highly successful economic development efforts because of strong state and local investments. Those investments need to continue to bring all projects to completion. In addition, continued adequate funding of the Community Legacy Program is also necessary to foster smaller projects of these types.

	Fully Fund Transportation Projects Last year's raid on the Transportation Trust Fund means money for local road and transit projects has diminished. The gasoline tax has not been raised in many years and needs to be updated to reflect current needs. Increased revenues need to be shared between road improvements and important transit projects, such as, The Bus and the Inner Purple Line, both in the northern end of the county, as well as over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, in the southern end of the county

	Fully Fund Local Homeland Security Efforts In the event the Washington, D.C. area becomes the target of another terrorist attack, emergency personnel in Prince George's County will be among the first to respond. Homeland security funds should be earmarked for first responders in this state. Furthermore, first responders should be provided with the appropriate liability shield when personnel respond outside their jurisdictional boundaries.