The Maryland General Assembly will be in session in Annapolis from Jan. 14 to April 13. We thought our readers would want to know what their state representatives will be working on, so Streetcar Suburbs Publishing reached out and asked the following four questions:
What are your top priorities for this legislative session?
What district-specific issues do you plan to take on?
How should the state legislature address rising costs, in particular for utilities?
How should the state legislature approach school funding this year?
Read below the responses from those who answered us before our January newspapers went to press, in alphabetical order.
Top priorities. I have multiple environmental bills related to flood risk. One requires sellers to disclose whether a property has ever flooded and its projected risk of flooding. Thirty other states have such a law; MD does not. A second bill would be a study of Maryland’s summer camps and RV parks emergency preparedness and evacuation plans in the event of a flood or other disaster. A third bill expands an existing law regarding design of government buildings and roads and bridges at risk of coastal flooding to include flooding from rivers.
On the non-environmental front, I am sponsoring legislation to require agencies to determine guardianship and social services supports needed when minor children or vulnerable seniors are left behind when a parent/guardian is detained and deported.
District-specific issues. I am working with Senator Rosapepe on legislation to protect against future development of the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center if the Trump administration tries to close it and/or sell it.
Rising costs (in particular for utilities). Indirectly, we should get more climate protection and taxpayer relief after the legislature voted to override the governor’s veto of the RENEW Act. The RENEW Act requires fossil fuel companies to dedicate funding for extreme weather events and climate disasters such as our hotter summers and more severe flooding. Right now, state and local governments bear those costs.
Also, the legislature will need to codify a Moore administration executive order to bring down energy costs. The order: 1. Directs the Public Service Commission (PSC) to review whether budget billing is protecting consumers from energy price spikes and to be more transparent; 2. Directs the MD Energy Administration to petition the PSC to require transmission owners to consider advanced technologies before getting approval to build new powerlines (whose construction costs are passed along to ratepayers); 3. Launches an inventory of property on which new energy systems can be built quickly; and 4. Establishes an energy subcabinet to identify the most urgent affordability and reliability challenges.
School funding. To fully fund the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, as it did in 2025, the General Assembly would have to identify both revenue/tax increases and cost cutting (it cut a record $2.5 billion in spending last year). The General Assembly also should follow the recommendations of the Blueprint for MD’s Future Accountability and Implementation Board (AIB). The suggestions included consolidating reports from local school districts, allowing out-of-state teachers to verify they have at least two years of experience vs. having to take a test to prove ability (to address the teacher shortage); and protecting state funding formulas for multilingual learners, students who live in poverty, and special education students.
Top priorities. My top priorities this session are affordability, access, and accountability. Families across Prince George’s County are being squeezed by rising costs, and the state has a responsibility to step in where the market has failed people. I’m focused on lowering everyday costs, protecting access to health care, strengthening immigration protections, and continuing our commitment to public education. Equity remains central to my work ensuring that the policies we pass don’t just look good on paper, but meaningfully improve outcomes for working families.
District-specific issues. In District 22, I stay grounded in what my constituents tell me they’re dealing with every day. That includes access to affordable health care, reliable public transportation, food access, housing stability, and strong neighborhood schools. A top priority is seeing the Purple Line completed and making sure we have the public safety funding and community resources in place to keep residents safe once it opens. In addition, lowering the rising HIV rate in our community is critical. That means continued investment in prevention, testing, treatment, and public education paired with policies that reduce stigma and expand access to care.
Rising costs, in particular for utilities. The legislature needs to take a firm, consumer-first approach. Utility costs are rising faster than wages, and families don’t have a choice when it comes to keeping the lights on or their homes heated. We need stronger oversight of utility companies, greater transparency around rate increases, and protections for low-income households, seniors, and people on fixed incomes. At the same time, we should continue investing in energy efficiency and clean energy programs that help lower bills over time and create good local jobs.
School funding. Even in a challenging budget year, we cannot retreat from our commitment to students. The Blueprint for Maryland’s Future is a promise we made, and we must continue to fully fund it. That means supporting educators, expanding access to mental health services, special education, and early childhood education, and ensuring Prince George’s County schools have the resources they need. Investing in education is essential to Maryland’s long-term success.
Top priorities: Continuing to protect Maryland working families from the attacks on our livelihoods by the Trump Administration. Federal workers and contractors continue to be laid off. Health insurance, ulility rates, and so many other cost continue to go up. And Trump keeps attacking our law-abiding immigrant neighbors and cutting aid for hungry and sick people. As I did last session, I’ll work with Governor Wes Moore, Delegates Joseline Pena-Melnyk, Ben Barnes, Mary Lehman, and other colleagues to stand up to the Trump attacks with legal actions and grassroots advocacy, as well as doing everything we can to hold down health costs, PEPCO, WGL, and BGE rates, and other price hikes.
District-specific issues: With my 21st District teammates, I’ll work to make sure the state continues to invest in improving Route 1, keeps the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center open and green, protects the University of Maryland and local schools from draconian budget cuts, and preserves tax relief and services for senior citizens.
Rising costs (particularly utilities): We passed legislation last year to crack down on utility cost overruns and budget padding, as well to accelerate increased, affordable renewable energy. We also required electric bill rebates to consumers in 2025 and 2026. This session, we need to see how effective these efforts have been and take further action if necessary. I’ll continue my work with legislators from Maryland and neighboring states to crack down on monopolistic practices by the big electricity companies and to make energy-guzzling data centers pay their own way without subsidies from residential ratepayers
School funding. We should continue to protect state funding for local schools. This coming year, the state faces a projected budget deficit primarily because of layoffs and rising prices caused by Trump’s attacks on Maryland’s economy. It should not be used as an excuse to cut investment in our local schools.
Top priorities. I have three pieces of legislation which are top priorities for me this session. First is legislation to ban 287(g) agreements with ICE. The second is to restrict the use of masking by local, state and federal law-enforcement officers who engage in law enforcement activities in Maryland. The third piece of legislation is to ban the sale of handguns which are designed in a way that allows the attachment of small pieces of plastic that convert the handgun to an automatic pistol.
District-specific issues. Working with our federal and local partners on ensuring that the new FBI headquarters are relocated to Greenbelt in District 22, work with our local municipalities on various bond requests for needed capital projects and to ensure the successful completion of the Purple Line.
Rising costs, in particular for utilities. We need to create more generation of electricity in order to lower the demand over a shrinking supply, which may mean exploring such options as the expansion of nuclear sources in the state, battery storage in addition to pushing for the construction of wind turbines and more solar.
School funding. We need to work on ensuring that we are funding the schools with the greatest need and whose students need more attention in order to attain the reading and math levels that we would like to see from all of our students. This may mean cuts to those schools where there is not as much need and demand given the $1.4 billion dollar deficit that is before the general assembly.
We will accept any additional submissions from state legislators who represent residents of Hyattsville, College Park or Laurel through Jan. 14, and include them above.