Here we go again…. HB-227 Ethics bill headed to a vote in the House floor today or Monday that REPEAL LIMITS on developer contributions.

This is a BAD BILL and should NOT be supported. The developer cash fueling campaigns in Prince George’s County in particular is kind of corrupt relationship which undermines the public’s confidence in government. Call your State Representatives and request for them to VOTE NO on Maryland HB-227

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Gov. Larry Hogan

Reform Sasscer Staff:

Gov. Larry Hogan on Thursday wants lawmakers to ensure accountability for local school systems before appropriating the billions in education funding called for by the Kirwan commission.

“My concern is that the recommendations of the Commission will lead to massive increases in expenditures without any assurance that our kids will receive a better education,” Hogan wrote in a letter Thursday to Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. and House Speaker Michael E. Busch.

Last week, Democratic leaders backed a 10-year package that would require $1 billion in state money over the next years. To implement all of the commission’s recommendations, it would cost $3.8 billion each year for the next 10 years.

The recommendations include expanded full-day pre-K, increased teacher salaries, more special education funding and support for struggling schools. Lawmakers said they would appoint a commission to figure out how to fund those proposals, but Hogan called for assurances accountability would be on the front end.

“The Commission’s purported aim was to adopt strategies that have been proven in a top-performing state, such as Massachusetts,” Hogan wrote. “Yet, the Commission failed to include any of the strong accountability strategies used in that state to achieve that success.”

In September, Hogan used an executive order to form an Office of Education Accountability as an independent watchdog. That followed a grade-fixing scandal in Prince George’s County and the perjury guilty plea by former Baltimore County Superintendent S. Dallas Dance. Dance failed to disclose tens of thousands in consulting income, including from a company that then won a no-bid contract with the county.

Department of Budget and Management Secretary David Brinkley expressed concerns in his own letter to top lawmakers. He said that a budget analysis by his office foresees a shortfall of $21 billion in all from fiscal year 2021 through 2025 if legislation mirroring the recommendations is passed, as well as other legislation increasing the minimum wage and pay to state employees.

“To put it another way, Maryland households will have to pay an additional $7,000 per family in state and local taxes over the next five years to cover this shortfall,” Brinkley wrote.

Both letters blasted Thornton commission as having been a waste of time after it failed to address problems which continues today. Below are the letters written to senior state officials in the Maryland legislature expressing reservations due to ongoing public corruption within the Maryland school systems.

In Prince George’s County, there is a major need to scrutinize the role of Dr. Charlene Duke – (President of PG county community college) in the whole saga in Prince George’s County  and the millions of dollars she is handling on behalf of Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS). Dr. Dukes has had a long history with Thornton and the Unions involved in major willful violations of law in Maryland.

Alvin Thornton (seen here) returned to the Prince George’s County Board of Education in 2018. There are concerns that, problems might continue to occur unless something is done to address the issues in Prince George’s County.  There is a major need to scrutinize the role of Dr. Charlene Duke – (President of PG county community college) in the whole saga in Prince George’s County  and the millions of dollars she is handling on behalf of PGCPS. Dr. Dukes has a long history with Thornton and the Unions involved in major willful violations of law in Maryland.

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Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) at his spirited news conference Monday, flanked by (left to right) Chief Legislative Officer Christopher B. Shank, Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford and Budget and Management Secretary David Brinkley. Photo by Danielle E. Gaines

By Bruce DePuyt| Josh Kurtz

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R), who has been quiet about the developments taking place in the General Assembly for the first nine weeks of session, re-engaged with a vengeance Monday, ripping lawmakers’ spending priorities, legislation to raise the state minimum wage to $15 an hour, and the legislature’s criminal justice agenda.

Speaking at a State House news conference – his first since early February – Hogan used a critical legislative deadline, “crossover day,” to slam lawmakers, accusing them of endangering the state’s economy, sidetracking key portions of his agenda and naked partisanship.

Hogan said the “reckless, unsustainable and irresponsible” spending plans making their way through the Democratically controlled legislature “threaten to make this the most harmful General Assembly session ever for Maryland taxpayers.”

Hogan was sharply critical of the funding the legislature is making available for the Kirwan Commission recommendations to improve public education in the state – though the House and Senate have not yet agreed on a final budgetary figure.

And Hogan had choice words for other Democrats and their initiatives, juxtaposing their record this year with his oft-cited personal popularity.

“The people of Maryland are now more encouraged about the direction of our state than they have ever been in recorded history,” he said. “Only 16 percent of the people in Maryland disapprove of the job that we’ve been doing – but it appears that all of them are serving in the Maryland General Assembly.”

Here are some of the issues Hogan raised at his news conference:

‘The most pro-criminal group of legislators I’ve ever seen’

Hogan accused the General Assembly of turning a blind eye to the ongoing spasm of violent crime in Baltimore.

The legislature has yet to act on a key Hogan priority — a measure (SB 166 and HB 236) to establish mandatory minimum sentences for crimes committed with a firearm. Under his proposal, unveiled early in the legislative session, gun crimes would be classified as felonies, with five-year prison sentences for the first offense and 10 years for second and subsequent offenses.

“If you’re a repeat violent offender who continually gets arrested for committing violent crimes with a gun, you need to go to jail,” Hogan told reporters.

“To say that we don’t want to do anything about the people who are committing those violent crimes… [is] outrageous and unacceptable.”

The governor also denounced as “silly” the legislature’s pursuit of a ban on firearms created from 3D printers, a technology not yet perfected.

“No one has ever committed a crime in the history of the state with a 3D-printed gun,” he said.

“Sure, let’s do it. Let’s step away from the copier. But what are we going to do about the people actually committing violent crimes with real guns? We need to get them off the streets.”

Lastly, Hogan called it “crazy” that there would even be a debate about whether to allow school resource officers — local police — to carry firearms in Baltimore City, as they do in some other parts of the state.

Hogan has also urged the Assembly to create a State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy to give the public greater insight into how individual judges mete out sentences in crimes of violence. That bill had a hearing in January but has also not received a vote.

“This seems to be, like, the most pro-criminal group of legislators I’ve ever seen,” Hogan said.

In an interview with reporters Monday evening, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) rejected the governor’s characterization of the legislature.

“We’re not protecting criminals,” Miller said. “In fact, if you look at the bills coming out of the [Senate] Judicial Proceedings Committee, they’re tough on crime.”

Miller predicted the Assembly will approve tougher sentences for people who use a handgun in a second-time offense, and tougher sanctions on drunk drivers.

Del. Luke V. Clippinger (D-Baltimore), chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said Hogan’s fiery rhetoric is not going to make neighborhoods safer.

“I know he’s good at staying on message, but that’s not going to stop violent crime in Baltimore City and around the state,” he said.

‘I don’t think it was late in the game at all’

Hogan said the bill to raise the state minimum wage from $10.10-an-hour to $15-an-hour would isolate Maryland because surrounding states have lower minimum wages.

“Small mom and pop businesses would be facing ruin,” he said.

About 10 days ago, Hogan wrote to the presiding officers of the General Assembly, suggesting a “compromise” minimum of wage of $12.10 an hour, to be fully implemented in 2022. But he did not offer any alternative legislation.

“Over the next three weeks our entire team will continue to work hard and reach out” to the legislature to reach a compromise, he said Monday.

Asked at the news conference whether he had waited too long to unveil his proposal, Hogan said administration officials wanted to see how the minimum wage bill emerged from the legislature.

“I don’t think it was late in the game at all,” he said. “We were responding to something that they had done.”

House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel) said lawmakers expected Hogan to introduce a bill to achieve the lower minimum wage and were surprised when he didn’t.

“I think everybody did a good job on the minimum wage bill,” he said. “It has a lot of exemptions in there. It tries to protect small businesses. It’s something that needs to be undertaken. We’re having a greater divide between the haves and have-nots in society. And one thing about the minimum wage legislation – that the people who make the [greater] minimum wage put the wages back into the economy.”

Hogan did not say whether he planned to veto the legislation. “We’ll take a look at it,” he said.

The House and Senate each passed the $15 minimum wage with a veto-proof majority. The two houses will still have to take the legislation to a conference committee to iron out differences between the two versions: principally, the Senate version slows down the full phase-in date for small businesses.

‘You guys better get some funding’ 

Hogan said he will be meeting with the state’s congressional delegation regarding a range of issues — including the deterioration of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway – later this month.

He said the U.S. Department of the Interior — which owns and operates the road — is doing a “terrible” job of keeping the parkway in good condition.

“It’s not been maintained and the federal government is doing nothing. They haven’t funded it, they’re not capable, they’re not focused.”

Hogan has had conversations with the Trump administration about transferring control of the parkway to the state, but on Monday he disclosed that some members of the state’s Hill delegation oppose that effort.

He did not name them, but he said he will have a message for the state’s senators and House members when he meets with them: Get on board or work with the Trump administration to secure the funds needed to maintain the roadway properly.

“Either let us have the road or you guys better get some funding and pressure the administration to get this road fixed because it’s unacceptable to our Maryland taxpayers who are having to drive on that mess,” he said.

The National Park Service reduced the speed limit to 40mph on March 1, because hundreds of potholes and craters have made it dangerous and damaging to drive at the posted speed.

‘Outrageous and unacceptable’

Hogan and Miller praised Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh (D) for resigning from the University of Maryland Medical System’s Board of Directors Monday. Her decision to step down — to give her more time to focus on being mayor, she said — came in the wake of conflict of interest allegations that have been raised against nearly a third of the board.

Pugh pocketed $100,000 when the system purchased bulk copies of a children’s book she wrote.

The system’s CEO, Robert A. Chrencik, has repeatedly defended the system’s decision to maintain financial arrangements with several members of its board, saying UMMS would be unable to attract savvy business leaders to the panel if strict conflict of interest rules were put in place.

After meeting with board Chairman Stephen A. Burch on Monday, Miller predicted that other members of the panel will follow Pugh out the door.

“This is a great board, but decisions were made… that were very unfortunate. There are going to be a number of resignations announced” Tuesday.

Miller also said there will “probably” be an audit to determine how many board members have contracts or other financial ties to the system, and he urged a new policy to discourage most board member conflicts.

According to news reports, nine of 30 UMMS board members have some financial tie to the system.

“The decision to reward certain members of the board, that the other members of the board don’t know about, was a tragic mistake that we need to make sure does not get repeated,” Miller said.

Hogan, Miller and Busch will meet with the board’s executive leadership team on Wednesday.

“We’re going to push for major reforms,” Hogan told reporters. “We’re going to make sure that people are either going to terminate their financial relationship or terminate having them on the board.

“We’re going to make sure that these kinds of things don’t happen in the future. It’s outrageous and unacceptable.”

Sen. Jill P. Carter (D-Baltimore City) has introduced legislation to prohibit UMMS board members from benefiting from their service.

Miller said any reforms need to distinguish between those board members who benefit personally from the system’s relationship with a private sector firm and those that are more tangential.

“For example, one of the members is a banker. He doesn’t benefit personally, but they use his bank on the board. There need to be common sense exceptions.”

“In terms of members who are actually getting paid [or having] jobs, I don’t know if they’re make-work jobs or they’re actual jobs, but before people are hired to do work, all the board members should know about it,” Miller said.

Busch noted that the questions surrounding the University of Maryland Medical System board follow on the heels of the controversy involving the university’s governing Board of Regents.

“(It) makes the entire University system look corrupt,” Busch said. “I cannot remember a scandal of this scale taking place since I’ve been in office.”

Miller said that if he gets another opportunity to select a member of the UMMS board, “It would be somebody like (former Maryland Attorney General) Steve Sachs [or] (U.S. Deputy Attorney General) Rod Rosenstein — somebody that would add stature to the board but at the same time would make certain that something like this doesn’t happen in the future.”

bruce@marylandmatters.org

Read more >>> Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan Proposes new school funding bill for construction as worst fears set in.

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) at his spirited news conference Monday, flanked by (left to right) Chief Legislative Officer Christopher B. Shank, Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford and Budget and Management Secretary David Brinkley. Governor Hogan knew about the problems in the Maryland schools more than 5 years ago and yet failed to act. 

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Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan visits Annapolis Elementary School in 2017. Before and after Governor Larry Hogan assumed office, he was aware of  the public corruption in Maryland. So why did he wait for the ‘Crossover Day’ to Rip Dems’ Legislative Agenda? Why did Hogan’s administration use a korean judge with ties to his wife to advance public corruption in Maryland under his watch? Why did Larry Hogan promote the said korean Judge with questionable background to be a circuit court judge in Maryland? Is this presidential? 

Reform Sasscer Staff:

Politics is a very dirty game. We guess the more you get involved, the more you can see through the games that are being played after years of exposure to correct the problems in Maryland.

Governor Larry Hogan has just played his cards beautifully. The only reason he is demanding transparency and accountability is to see how many Democrats will vote Yes on accountability and transparency and how many Democrats votes no, and expose their true colors.

Dirty?

In his State of the State Address, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan launched the 2019 legislative session and introduced his 2020 budget with his usual proclamations of “record investment in K-12 education” and “fiscal responsibility.” Campaign ads and social media posts laud Hogan for miraculously managing to fund education without raising taxes or increasing the deficit. His commitment to education, supporters say, is why he soared to victory as a Republican in a deeply blue state. But a closer look at Hogan’s budget proves he is failing to give our public schools the substantial investment they truly need.

Now, all we can say is that let them all vote “yes” to accountability because truthfully every single person should vote for what is right with proper oversight.. but who knows until it happens. Everybody we spoke to says, anything about accountability is not a favored subject by both sides. “Just look at what is happening to the Comptroller of Maryland Hon. Peter Franchot (D-MD) after he went after the corruption in Maryland legislature,” one concerned citizen who wanted to remain anonymous said.

Educating our children is an important step to making sure that our children lead productive lives. However, as there are calls for increased funding for public education, Hogan is saying not so fast and calling for more accountability before approving more funding by the Kirwan Commission.

“My concern is that the recommendations of the Commission will lead to massive increases in expenditures without any assurance that our kids will receive a better education,” Hogan wrote in a letter Thursday to Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. and House Speaker Michael E. Busch”.

Half baked politically based rhetoric will not solve the problems in our Maryland schools! There definitely needs to be accountability and Governor Larry Hogan has known this since day one. He should lead the way by example and not dish tax payer funds to the private entities like charter schools and other groups who are not answerable to the taxpayers.

There is no question Maryland needs a thorough audit and investigation of how our tax dollars are spent!!! Why are Baltimore city schools and parts of Prince George’s county public Schools so deplorable? what happened to all the monies for school improvements, who got unwarranted salary increases, cut all department budgets by 20% throughout the state, how is the lottery monies spent; etc.!!! Expose it all and make it available to the public for review!!! We must Stop the wastage of tax payer dollars!!!!

Governor Larry Hogan complains now. Maybe he should have thought of that before he spent his energy and focused on taking out a Republican Senator in district 29 instead of helping elect more Republicans around the state. You’re responsible for this mess, Hogan. Why does Hogan keep on ignoring the main players in Prince George’s County involved in major violations of law starting with Monica Goldson?

The Governor should have worked and fought harder in the last election to have gained a credible veto in at least one house of the Maryland General Assembly (MGA).

Long before Governor Larry Hogan assumed office, he was aware of the public school  corruption in Maryland after major exposure through the press over the years. So why did he wait for the ‘Crossover Day’ to Rip Dems’ Legislative Agenda? Why did the establishment led by Hogan use a korean judge with ties to his wife to advance public corruption in Maryland under his watch? Why  did Larry Hogan promote the said korean Judge with questionable background to be a circuit court judge in Maryland? Is this presidential?

Instead of praising Hogan, let’s hold him and his administration accountable and demand that he fully fund our public schools. In addition, the establishment should stop advancing institutional racism and ignoring accountability using the Maryland Court system as a weapon to lynch people they do not like such as Josephat Mua as part of organized scheme. Our students deserve nothing less.

More to Come

***

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) at his spirited news conference Monday, flanked by (left to right) Chief Legislative Officer Christopher B. Shank, Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford and Budget and Management Secretary David Brinkley. Photo by Danielle E. Gaines

By Bruce DePuyt| Josh Kurtz

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R), who has been quiet about the developments taking place in the General Assembly for the first nine weeks of session, re-engaged with a vengeance Monday, ripping lawmakers’ spending priorities, legislation to raise the state minimum wage to $15 an hour, and the legislature’s criminal justice agenda.

Speaking at a State House news conference – his first since early February – Hogan used a critical legislative deadline, “crossover day,” to slam lawmakers, accusing them of endangering the state’s economy, sidetracking key portions of his agenda and naked partisanship.

Hogan said the “reckless, unsustainable and irresponsible” spending plans making their way through the Democratically controlled legislature “threaten to make this the most harmful General Assembly session ever for Maryland taxpayers.”

Hogan was sharply critical of the funding the legislature is making available for the Kirwan Commission recommendations to improve public education in the state – though the House and Senate have not yet agreed on a final budgetary figure.

And Hogan had choice words for other Democrats and their initiatives, juxtaposing their record this year with his oft-cited personal popularity.

“The people of Maryland are now more encouraged about the direction of our state than they have ever been in recorded history,” he said. “Only 16 percent of the people in Maryland disapprove of the job that we’ve been doing – but it appears that all of them are serving in the Maryland General Assembly.”

Here are some of the issues Hogan raised at his news conference:

‘The most pro-criminal group of legislators I’ve ever seen’

Hogan accused the General Assembly of turning a blind eye to the ongoing spasm of violent crime in Baltimore.

The legislature has yet to act on a key Hogan priority — a measure (SB 166 and HB 236) to establish mandatory minimum sentences for crimes committed with a firearm. Under his proposal, unveiled early in the legislative session, gun crimes would be classified as felonies, with five-year prison sentences for the first offense and 10 years for second and subsequent offenses.

“If you’re a repeat violent offender who continually gets arrested for committing violent crimes with a gun, you need to go to jail,” Hogan told reporters.

“To say that we don’t want to do anything about the people who are committing those violent crimes… [is] outrageous and unacceptable.”

The governor also denounced as “silly” the legislature’s pursuit of a ban on firearms created from 3D printers, a technology not yet perfected.

“No one has ever committed a crime in the history of the state with a 3D-printed gun,” he said.

“Sure, let’s do it. Let’s step away from the copier. But what are we going to do about the people actually committing violent crimes with real guns? We need to get them off the streets.”

Lastly, Hogan called it “crazy” that there would even be a debate about whether to allow school resource officers — local police — to carry firearms in Baltimore City, as they do in some other parts of the state.

Hogan has also urged the Assembly to create a State Commission on Criminal Sentencing Policy to give the public greater insight into how individual judges mete out sentences in crimes of violence. That bill had a hearing in January but has also not received a vote.

“This seems to be, like, the most pro-criminal group of legislators I’ve ever seen,” Hogan said.

In an interview with reporters Monday evening, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) rejected the governor’s characterization of the legislature.

“We’re not protecting criminals,” Miller said. “In fact, if you look at the bills coming out of the [Senate] Judicial Proceedings Committee, they’re tough on crime.”

Miller predicted the Assembly will approve tougher sentences for people who use a handgun in a second-time offense, and tougher sanctions on drunk drivers.

Del. Luke V. Clippinger (D-Baltimore), chair of the House Judiciary Committee, said Hogan’s fiery rhetoric is not going to make neighborhoods safer.

“I know he’s good at staying on message, but that’s not going to stop violent crime in Baltimore City and around the state,” he said.

‘I don’t think it was late in the game at all’

Hogan said the bill to raise the state minimum wage from $10.10-an-hour to $15-an-hour would isolate Maryland because surrounding states have lower minimum wages.

“Small mom and pop businesses would be facing ruin,” he said.

About 10 days ago, Hogan wrote to the presiding officers of the General Assembly, suggesting a “compromise” minimum of wage of $12.10 an hour, to be fully implemented in 2022. But he did not offer any alternative legislation.

“Over the next three weeks our entire team will continue to work hard and reach out” to the legislature to reach a compromise, he said Monday.

Asked at the news conference whether he had waited too long to unveil his proposal, Hogan said administration officials wanted to see how the minimum wage bill emerged from the legislature.

“I don’t think it was late in the game at all,” he said. “We were responding to something that they had done.”

House Speaker Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel) said lawmakers expected Hogan to introduce a bill to achieve the lower minimum wage and were surprised when he didn’t.

“I think everybody did a good job on the minimum wage bill,” he said. “It has a lot of exemptions in there. It tries to protect small businesses. It’s something that needs to be undertaken. We’re having a greater divide between the haves and have-nots in society. And one thing about the minimum wage legislation – that the people who make the [greater] minimum wage put the wages back into the economy.”

Hogan did not say whether he planned to veto the legislation. “We’ll take a look at it,” he said.

The House and Senate each passed the $15 minimum wage with a veto-proof majority. The two houses will still have to take the legislation to a conference committee to iron out differences between the two versions: principally, the Senate version slows down the full phase-in date for small businesses.

‘You guys better get some funding’ 

Hogan said he will be meeting with the state’s congressional delegation regarding a range of issues — including the deterioration of the Baltimore-Washington Parkway – later this month.

He said the U.S. Department of the Interior — which owns and operates the road — is doing a “terrible” job of keeping the parkway in good condition.

“It’s not been maintained and the federal government is doing nothing. They haven’t funded it, they’re not capable, they’re not focused.”

Hogan has had conversations with the Trump administration about transferring control of the parkway to the state, but on Monday he disclosed that some members of the state’s Hill delegation oppose that effort.

He did not name them, but he said he will have a message for the state’s senators and House members when he meets with them: Get on board or work with the Trump administration to secure the funds needed to maintain the roadway properly.

“Either let us have the road or you guys better get some funding and pressure the administration to get this road fixed because it’s unacceptable to our Maryland taxpayers who are having to drive on that mess,” he said.

The National Park Service reduced the speed limit to 40mph on March 1, because hundreds of potholes and craters have made it dangerous and damaging to drive at the posted speed.

‘Outrageous and unacceptable’

Hogan and Miller praised Baltimore Mayor Catherine E. Pugh (D) for resigning from the University of Maryland Medical System’s Board of Directors Monday. Her decision to step down — to give her more time to focus on being mayor, she said — came in the wake of conflict of interest allegations that have been raised against nearly a third of the board.

Pugh pocketed $100,000 when the system purchased bulk copies of a children’s book she wrote.

The system’s CEO, Robert A. Chrencik, has repeatedly defended the system’s decision to maintain financial arrangements with several members of its board, saying UMMS would be unable to attract savvy business leaders to the panel if strict conflict of interest rules were put in place.

After meeting with board Chairman Stephen A. Burch on Monday, Miller predicted that other members of the panel will follow Pugh out the door.

“This is a great board, but decisions were made… that were very unfortunate. There are going to be a number of resignations announced” Tuesday.

Miller also said there will “probably” be an audit to determine how many board members have contracts or other financial ties to the system, and he urged a new policy to discourage most board member conflicts.

According to news reports, nine of 30 UMMS board members have some financial tie to the system.

“The decision to reward certain members of the board, that the other members of the board don’t know about, was a tragic mistake that we need to make sure does not get repeated,” Miller said.

Hogan, Miller and Busch will meet with the board’s executive leadership team on Wednesday.

“We’re going to push for major reforms,” Hogan told reporters. “We’re going to make sure that people are either going to terminate their financial relationship or terminate having them on the board.

“We’re going to make sure that these kinds of things don’t happen in the future. It’s outrageous and unacceptable.”

Sen. Jill P. Carter (D-Baltimore City) has introduced legislation to prohibit UMMS board members from benefiting from their service.

Miller said any reforms need to distinguish between those board members who benefit personally from the system’s relationship with a private sector firm and those that are more tangential.

“For example, one of the members is a banker. He doesn’t benefit personally, but they use his bank on the board. There need to be common sense exceptions.”

“In terms of members who are actually getting paid [or having] jobs, I don’t know if they’re make-work jobs or they’re actual jobs, but before people are hired to do work, all the board members should know about it,” Miller said.

Busch noted that the questions surrounding the University of Maryland Medical System board follow on the heels of the controversy involving the university’s governing Board of Regents.

“(It) makes the entire University system look corrupt,” Busch said. “I cannot remember a scandal of this scale taking place since I’ve been in office.”

Miller said that if he gets another opportunity to select a member of the UMMS board, “It would be somebody like (former Maryland Attorney General) Steve Sachs [or] (U.S. Deputy Attorney General) Rod Rosenstein — somebody that would add stature to the board but at the same time would make certain that something like this doesn’t happen in the future.”

bruce@marylandmatters.org

Read more >>> Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan Proposes new school funding bill for construction as worst fears set in.

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) at his spirited news conference Monday, flanked by (left to right) Chief Legislative Officer Christopher B. Shank, Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford and Budget and Management Secretary David Brinkley. Governor Hogan knew about the problems in the Maryland schools more than 5 years ago and yet failed to act. 

UPPER MALRBORO, Md. (FOX 5 DC) – Prince George’s Co. Public Schools is not following state law or its own policies when it comes to awarding millions of dollars in contracts, according to a state audit on the school system’s financial management.

FOX 5 has learned the school district’s director of purchasing is no longer employed as of Friday.

According to the audit by the Department of Legislative Services, the contracts in question total nearly $85 million.

According to the report, “the required justification was not documented for 13 of the 15 sole source contracts we tested totaling $6.8 million and PGCPS had not documented the benefits from one ICPA (intergovernmental cooperative purchasing agreement) contract“ valued at $34.8 million over five years.

The audit also found 32 contracts totaling $43.1 million were not submitted to the Board of Education for approval as required. Two of those contracts were awarded to vendors that were either not the most qualified or the lowest cost bidders, according to the audit.

“It has the appearances of bid steering, improper bid steering,” said Louis Clark, CEO of the nonprofit Government Accountability Project.

The state audit does not name the companies or offer details on why rules were not followed with certain contracts. Clark says an additional investigation is necessary to find out if there was improper bid steering.

“Bid steering can actually be a bribe,” he said. “It could be friendships, it could be relationships, it could be that someone inside the government is looking for a job outside the government when they leave,” said Clark.

Perhaps most concerning is that state auditors found similar violations of the law in prior audits.

In 2014, auditors found “PGCPS could not provide documentation that awards were properly made for 12 contracts valued at $13 million.”

In 2006, auditors found “PGCPS did not maintain required documentation justifying the use of sole-source procurement totaling $1 million.”

Auditors at those times made the same recommendations they are making now.

“It’s sickening, and it’s very hard to see this happen,” said Donna Young, a former PGCPS employee who worked as a senior buyer in the purchasing department.

Young, who worked for PGCPS in 2011-2013, alleges that she saw bid steering occurring and tried to report it. She says she believes the root cause is kickbacks, nepotism and other relationships.

“We literally saw people that didn’t bid get contracts in my time,” Young said.

She hopes finally something will change.

“It is our responsibility to ensure that the kids get the best value,” she said.

FOX 5 requested an interview with PGCPS Interim CEO Dr. Monica Goldson, but her office said her schedule Monday did not allow for that.

In a statement, Dr. Goldson said:

“As the leader of Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS), transparency and accountability are my guideposts. 

Prior to my appointment as Interim CEO, several audits were underway reviewing a wide range of internal functions. With each audit report, our weaknesses fall into three specific areas: a lack of clear procedure, weak policy enforcement or poor monitoring and oversight. Most concerning are areas with repeat deficiencies. To address these concerns, we have taken steps to begin changing our procedures and culture within certain departments. We shared information about the audit findings in a community letter today.

As we announced earlier this year, audit findings involving waste, fraud or abuse will be referred to the State’s Attorney’s Office for additional review. 

Our schools are only as strong as our business and financial practices. The audit findings represent an opportunity to fix long-standing challenges that undercut our core mission of teaching and learning. We must hold ourselves to the highest standards when taxpayer dollars and the public trust are at stake.”

Via Fox 5DC

***

By Michael Quander

RIVERDALE, Md. — A Prince George’s County teacher exposed what appears to be decaying conditions at Parkdale High School.

Monica Brokenborough supplied photos that appear to show crumbling ceiling tiles, evidence of a rodent problem, and doors missing from bathroom stalls.

“I was absolutely shocked,” Brokenborough said. “The students have brought to my attention that a lot of their bathrooms actually resemble something that’s kind of comparable to a jail cell.”

Brokenborough told WUSA9 her students at Parkdale High School snapped pictures from inside of the boy’s and girl’s bathrooms.

The images showed doors missing from stalls, and one photo exhibited a partition that appeared to be ripped from the wall.

“There’s just a toilet sitting out in the open for the whole world to see,” Brokenborough described.

Brokenborough explained that the problems extended past the bathrooms and into the classrooms.

The music teacher supplied WUSA9 with pictures of holes in the walls, missing or broken ceiling tiles, and spots in her classroom where she put duct tape over mouse holes.

“There’s been a couple of times where my classes had to evacuate because of the presence of a rodent,” Brokenborough said.

Findings in a school climate survey from 2017 revealed most students believed the school was not clean.

More than half of the students surveyed agreed that the bathrooms were not cleaned or maintained well.

The school does the climate survey every two years, according to the website for Prince George’s County Public Schools.

New survey results are expected to be published in Fall 2019.

Prince George’s County Schools sent us this statement regarding the issues:

Work orders were issued two to three months ago for the repairs in question (i.e., bathroom stall and classroom). Regarding the bathroom, the project was delayed pending ordering of the replacement part. Other bathrooms in the school are fully operational. We expect both the classroom ceiling tiles and bathroom partition to be replaced within 30 days. Our environmental teams confirmed today there is no rodent infestation at the school. 

Via WUSA 9

Parkdale High Sschool Principal response after the WUSA9 news story…

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