From Maryland Business For Responsive Government

MBRG to Keep Close Eye on Special Session

 5.07.12

Towson, MD - Maryland Business for Responsive Government announced today it will be monitoring votes from both the special and regular sessions of the Maryland General Assembly for possible inclusion in the annual publication that monitors the legislature's impact on the business community and job creation.

With a compressed time frame, legislation in a special session is often introduced without adequate vetting in the committee hearing process. One notable example is the "tech tax" which swiftly passed the General Assembly in the 2007 special session and was signed into law only to be repealed and later replaced by the millionaire's tax after an outcry from Maryland's IT sector.

"All kinds of mischief is possible in a special session," said MBRG President Kimberly M. Burns. " And everyone is aware that the Governor, Senate President and House Speaker didn't finish their work by April 9."

MBRG noted the legislature is not limited to simply proposals to increase the income tax, which is bad enough, but that a special session puts everything back in the mix. Still, the impetus for the session is to raise revenues to please government spending advocates.

"It’s a pretty sad day in Maryland when the legislature re-convenes just to raise taxes on hard working Maryland families and businesses to support its spending habit," Burns said. "I hope folks will be paying attention."

MBRG will be taking a close look at regular and special session votes in its annual Roll Call publication, which grades legislators on their votes on issues affecting jobs and business in Maryland. The publication will be issued in late June; the 2012 edition will mark the 27th edition of Roll Call.