I would give my testimony a B++.

Why a grade? I was speaking alongside the deans of the University of Baltimore and University of Maryland law schools, where I co-teach the Legislation class in the fall semester.

I knew the issue and never looked down at my written statement. If my rhetoric had sung, I would have gotten an A.

The issue was funding the tax clinics at both schools and the one offered by the Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service.

For example, sound advice would prevent taxpayers from being on the verge of losing their vehicle registration because they had not paid undisputed taxes.

Those payments would fund the clinics.

As is the case with tobacco taxes, some day we would need to find a new source of revenue.

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I also teach my students to personalize their testimony.

House Bill 1016 would fund a year of public service for people who have just graduated from high school.

Testifying after me was Jesse Colvin, the CEO of Service Year Alliance, which hopes to spread this idea nationwide.

Jesse served four combat deployments in Afghanistan.

He told the committee: “”My military experience, especially in Afghanistan, is where I learned what is possible when Americans from different walks of life join together to tackle shared problems.”