2011 Legislative Session Update from Del. Susan Aumann

Delegate Susan L.M. Aumann

6 Bladen Street

303 Lowe House Office Building

Annapolis, MD 21401

410-841-3258

Susan.Aumann@house.state.md.us

January 27, 2011

The 2011 legislative session began Wednesday January 12^th with the swearing in of the members of the Maryland General Assembly. We are ready to tackle the hard work ahead in the next 90 days.

With the 428^th session of the Maryland General Assembly underway, a number of issues will be addressed during the 2011 legislative session.

Budget Deficit:

Secretary Eloise Foster of the Department of Budget and Management, and Joe Bryce, Governor O’Malley’s Chief Legislative Officer, briefed us on what to expect from the FY 2012 budget. The Governor’s proposal will have to address the estimated $1.6 billion deficit along with a capital budget that is nearing the sustainable debt ceiling. Under Maryland law, the state’s budget must be in balance (in contrast to federal budgets which may continue under deficit conditions). Maryland has an executive-driven budget process, wherein the Governor’s budget is presented to the General Assembly, which may only make cuts to the proposed budget. The legislature is not able to add additional funds to the proposed budget, and may move monies from one fund to another on a limited basis. The Governor’s budget must be submitted by January 21.

Pension Shortfall:

We also heard from a panel presenting on the growing crisis within Maryland’s pension and other post-employment benefits (OPEB) funds. Maryland’s pension obligation is only 64% funded, leaving us $19 billion short of where we need to be. Additionally our OPEB obligations, which include things like health insurance for retirees, stand at $16 billion.

While our $1.6 billion budget deficit gets a great deal of attention and needs to be eliminated, our massive pension shortfalls must be dealt with.

Redistricting:

The redistricting process begins this year. Across the nation, new legislative district boundaries are drawn every ten years, following the census. When census information has been processed and forwarded to the Governor’s office, the multi-part process of creating new district maps for both Congressional and state legislative districts begins. This process is critical to ensure that all Maryland citizens have fair and equal representation at all levels of government.

The Congressional and Legislative plans follow separate processes – the Congressional plan will be dealt with in a Special Session this fall and the Legislative Plan being introduced next year during the 2012 Legislative Session.

But that’s not all…;

While each of these issues is expected to be a major focus of the 2011 General Assembly session, there are many other important issues for us to deal with. Social issues such as the death penalty, illegal immigration, same-sex marriage, and tighter regulation of abortion clinics will all have significance this year. While the Governor has said his budget will not contain tax increases, the General Assembly’s thirst for new revenue cannot be taken for granted. We will keep you informed as to the progress of these and many other issues as we move through the 90-day session.

Please keep me informed of your views and opinions.

Very truly yours,

Delegate Susan L.M. Aumann

District 42 - Baltimore County

303 Lowe House Office Building

Annapolis, MD 21401

410-841-3258; FAX 410-841-3163

Susan.Aumann@house.state.md.us