Uncategorized – Page 29 – Sandy Rosenberg

Be Prepared

February 11, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

Be Prepared is the Boy Scout motto and a song from “The Lion King.”

I was not a Boy Scout, and I haven’t seen the musical. (Thanks to Google for the latter.)

But I have prepared for quite a few hearings on my bills.

On the House floor this morning, another delegate asked me to help out on a bill that will be heard in my committee this afternoon.

“Send me the language that’s at issue here,” I responded. “I’ll ask a question at the hearing.”

That exchange prompted me to think about a hearing on one of my bills tomorrow.

House Bill 566 would require that the rental properties of a landlord be in compliance with Maryland’s law regarding lead poisoning prevention if the property owner is applying for an Opportunity Zone Tax Credit.

I wrote a lobbyist for rental property owners: “Will you be testifying in support of House Bill 566 tomorrow?”

Five hours later, no response.

My alternative means of discovery: get a copy of everyone’s written testimony on the bill when it becomes available at 1 pm tomorrow.

That will enable me to respond to the written objections to the bill when I testify.

Spotlighting Bots

February 10, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

My name doesn’t have to be first on the sponsor line of the bill.

Sometimes, it’s better to be second, especially if the person who’s first sits on the committee that’s hearing the bill.

Even better if that colleague is in the room where it happens – when the committee leadership meets prior to the public voting session to “recommend” which bills should pass and which bills should fail.

A “bot” is “an automated online account where all or substantially all of the actions or posts of that account are not the result of a person.”

Russian operatives were behind hundreds or thousands of fake accounts on Twitter and Facebook that regularly posted anti-Clinton messages during the 2016 campaign. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/07/us/politics/russia-facebook-twitter-election.html

House Bill 465 would require that the use of a “bot” to publish, distribute or disseminate campaign material online be disclosed on the campaign material.

I asked that the bill be drafted, but then I asked Delegate Alice Cain to be the lead sponsor. She sits on the Election Law Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee.

We will both sit at the witness table tomorrow.

Go Fund Me

February 6, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

“Of all of the health disparities that this committee considers, this one should rise to the top.”

The witness was the mother of a child with PANDAS – Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders.

PANDAS is an obsessive-compulsive or tic disorder that suddenly appears following a strep infection.

One parent spent virtually the entire hearing with his head down – ashamed, I thought, or he didn’t want us to see him crying.

“This is a treatment that is medically prescribed,” declared another witness. “We don’t want to set up a Go Fund Me page.”

House Bill 447 would require the Medicaid program to pay for certain services for these children and require health insurance companies to provide coverage for certain diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment for the disease.

Our job is to decide who should foot the bill.

We also heard House Bill 134 today.

It presents the same dilemma for insulin.

According to a witness from the American Diabetes Association, prices for insulin have tripled between 2002 and 2013, and in much of Europe, the cost is about one-sixth of what it is in the United States.

Genuine negotiations

February 5, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

Democratic legislators had a press conference yesterday on our plan to address public safety.

Delegate Maggie McIntosh tweeted:

Crime isn’t just a Baltimore City issue -it’s a statewide issue. Our plan will address several strategies including: tougher penalties for witness intimidation, making sure parole and probation agencies have the resources they need, and audits on gun crimes #Working4MD #MDGA2020 pic.twitter.com/2ya8kGkRwX

Governor Hogan gave his State of the State address today.

If you do not consider any other legislation, and if you accomplish nothing else in the next 61 days, pass the “Violent Firearm Offenders Act of 2020,” which increases penalties for those who use guns to commit violent crimes, toughens penalties for those who possess stolen firearms and guns with obliterated serial numbers, and those who use, possess, or supply illegal guns to violent criminals.

I have introduced a bill focusing on parole and probation officers, who supervise people who were incarcerated but are now in the community. My legislation would require that we hire more of these officers to address the current shortage and study how they can be more effective in reducing recidivism. study

The key is not what was tweeted, said, or blogged this week but what we do next.

Will there be genuine negotiations between the Governor and the legislature and a willingness to compromise to reach a sound policy outcome?

Effective Testimony and Alternative Cost

February 4, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

I know effective testimony when I hear it.

Especially when the witness is sitting next to me and speaking on behalf of my bill.

House Bill 186 would broaden eligibility for a program that repays a portion of a teacher’s academic debt if the teacher is in a school where most of the children come from poor families.

Joseph Mahach, who teaches at the John Ruhrah Elementary Middle School in Southeast Baltimore, told the Appropriations Committee:

By passing HB 186, you can tell teachers that you are looking out for them. You can show us that funding education isn’t just a discussion of best practices ad budget calculations. You can show teachers that yes, the state of Maryland is committed to world class education, but that doesn’t mean you will lose sight of the details that can make a career in teaching just that little bit easier.

—-

Every bill has a fiscal note.

The note estimates the cost of implementing the legislation.

If a bureaucrat doesn’t like your bill, he or she will submit a costly estimate to the General Assembly’s budget staff.

But I am not without options.

I wrote a friend and computer entrepreneur to ask for his estimate.

I can submit his response to our budget staff as well.

Counting to 2

February 4, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

For a bill to pass the House of Delegates, you need 71 votes.

Today, however, I discussed how to make it likely that my bill would get two votes.

A three-judge panel of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the law we passed regulating digital advertising because it violated the 1^st Amendment rights of newspapers.

I had a conference call today with people who were involved in that litigation – lawyers and an election administrator.

The point was made that we need to enact a bill that would be upheld by the 4th Circuit – by at least two of the judges on a three-judge panel.

To count to 71, we will need to assure my colleagues that we can count to 2.

A Big Day

January 30, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

“This is a big day for all of us.”

We had just overridden Governor Hogan’s veto of House Bill 1343, Public Safety – Handgun Permit Review Board – Repeal.

This story begins in the fall of 2017.

I asked Alice Wilkerson, the lobbyist for Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence, if there were any issues that needed to be addressed with legislation.

“One of our members has been monitoring the Handgun Permit Review Board,” she informed me, “and the new gubernatorial appointees are reversing a significant number of the decisions made by the State Police that denied a license to carry.”

We decided to introduce a bill that would eliminate the Board and have administrative law judges handle appeals of State Police decisions instead.

But since I was not on the Judiciary Committee, where the bill would be assigned, I would not introduce the bill.

Delegate Vanessa Atterbeary, a member of the committee and now its vice chair, would do that. I would be listed second on the sponsor line, followed by the other co-sponsors in alphabetical order.

Our bill passed the House but was watered down by the Senate.

Last year, both houses passed HB 1343, which eliminated the Board and gave jurisdiction over appeals to administrative law judges.

Today, we overrode Governor Hogan’s veto.

Leaving the chamber, I saw Alice Wilkerson and several members of Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence.

“This is a big day for all of us,” I said.

—-

Next Tuesday is the primary election for the 7^th Congressional District seat vacated by the untimely death of Elijah Cummings.

I have endorsed my 41^st District colleague, State Senator Jill Carter.

I have served with Jill for nearly two decades. She is a fighter – for good causes. She will be a great voice for all of the people of the 7th District.

She has earned your support.

No fence

January 30, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

“The fence comes down.”

The fence surrounds Pimlico Race Track.

It’s been there for quite some time.

I drive past it on Rogers Av., when I’m coming home from my district office.

I walk past it on Belvedere Av., coming from my house to the track on Preakness Day.

At a community meeting last night, Bill Cole said that when the site is redeveloped, “The fence comes down.”

Bill represented the City of Baltimore in the negotiations that resulted in the agreement to keep the Preakness at Pimlico and redevelop 50 acres on the site for housing, businesses, and recreation.

There will be no fence to keep people off the property.

Legislation to implement that plan will be introduced within a week.

We are in the home stretch.

Saying Yes

January 29, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

Tikkun olam (repairing the world) is the work of the Associated: Jewish Federation of Baltimore. Last night, the organization’s founding in 1920 was celebrated.

I was honored to be asked to speak. This is what I said.

When Ben Rosenberg, a suitor of humble origins, came to ask Stewart and Sylvia Hecht for the hand of their daughter, Babette, they said yes. In the Baltimore Jewish community of 1945, some parents – perhaps many, would have said no.

That yes blossomed into a story of love and legacy – as my parents set the example for my brothers Stewart and Bruce and myself, and we set out to make our example – in the city of Baltimore, Annapolis, the State of Israel, and elsewhere.

I hope that I am setting a similar example for those who are watching me. My niece and nephew, Rachel and Elliot; my grand niece Liv; my family and friends; and those who need our assistance the most. When The Associated has called on me to support the mission, I have been happy and proud to be on the bus.

Whether the vision is for an expanded dialogue about Israel, opportunities for young people to engage in Jewish ecology, or the preservation of our history through the Jewish Museum, I not only believe in The Associated’s vision, but I have helped create it for the next century.

Five years ago, Marc Terrill asked me to join the Board of Governors of The Associated. At first I was hesitant. “I already go to enough meetings,” I told Marc. But, in this case, because of, and in honor of my parents’ involvement, I too, like Grandpa and Grandma, said yes.

I’m glad that I did.

Where It Happens

January 27, 2020 | by delsandy | Uncategorized | No Comments

My first bill hearing is tomorrow.

The first draft of my testimony began with a bland summary of the Maryland Technology Internship Program.

“My first rule when writing testimony,” I told my staff, “is to grab the committee members’ attention with your first sentence.”

After some Googling, my testimony now begins:

“My advice for young people is, study what you love and intern in what you want to do.”

-Eva Chen, Director, Instagram

I added: Whatever your aspiration, an internship can be a vital first step on your chosen career path.

Another rule I try to live by is be in the room where it happens – where decisions are made.

As you may know, “The Room Where It Happens” is the title of a song in Hamilton.

“The Room Where It Happened” is the title of former national security adviser John Bolton’s upcoming memoir.

Before he made it to Broadway, Hamilton wrote of Aaron Burr that if he became President, there was a risk that he would undertake “a bargain and sale with some foreign power, or combinations with public agents in projects of gain by means of the public monies.”

“The public good,” he further wrote, “must be paramount to every private consideration.”

My Key Issues:

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