QUOTES OF THE
WEEK: “I hope that
there will be an official declaration of an armistice, on the cessation of all
acts of violence.”
- Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres, referring to the upcoming meeting in Sharm el-Sheik between Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
“God willing, [the declaration] will happen.”
- President Abbas.
Friday Footnote #14 … February 4, 2005
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Phone:
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Visit
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4. Worth a read
…And click here for our archive of
previous Friday Footnotes.
|
W |
elcome, friends, to another edition of the Friday Footnote,
a weekly letter about Maryland politics and the Jewish community.
Three weeks done, and the legislative session is moving into
high gear. More than 1,000 bills have
been introduced (and if you’re keeping track on the General Assembly’s website, you’ll find
that close to 2,000 more will be filed in the next week or so). Budget hearings have begun. And competing
proposals have emerged on school construction funding and slot machines, to
name just a few hot topics.
Closer to home, on Monday we’ll celebrate a new round of
federal funding for the Senior Friendly Neighborhoods project, at a news
conference to thank Sen. Barbara Mikulski and Congressman Benjamin Cardin.
Please don’t forget to register for our Maryland Jewish
Alliance Advocacy Day in Annapolis, on Monday March 7. We count on your activism to help us get our
message across to legislators, and show how politically involved the Jewish
community is.
I hope you’ll take a few moments to look over our new
website, www.baltjc.org, and let us know what you think
and what you’d like to see there.
As always, I hope you and your family have a pleasant and
peaceful Shabbat.
- David
Reserve a place now for “Raging Anti-Semitism in Europe: Why
Not Here?,” a special program of the Baltimore Jewish Council’s Metropolitan
Issues and World Jewry Commissions. Featuring Jerome Chanes, Professor and author
of “A Dark Side of History: Anti-Semitism Through The Ages.” At The Associated,
101 W. Mount Royal Avenue. Wednesday, February 23, 2005, 12:00 – 2:00
p.m. Lunch - $8.00. RSVP by
February 14 to [email protected]
Tsunami fund update
Thank you to everyone who
responded to THE ASSOCIATED’s online tsunami relief appeal. More than $140,000 was donated by 500 donors
(in very short order, with minimal administrative expense) to assist the
victims in Southeast Asia. THE
ASSOCIATED also reports that along with the American Jewish Joint Distribution
Committee and other Jewish communities around the country, the total “American Jewish”
contribution to relief efforts was more than $12 million.
You can still give, by clicking here.
(And
if you want an easy way to support the many agencies and programs of THE
ASSOCIATED, of which the Baltimore Jewish Council is a proud affiliate, you can
click here.)
Legislative update
On Wednesday, House Democratic leaders
offered a plan that likely would undercut the push for slot machine gambling in
Maryland. House Speaker Mike Busch and
other Democrats proposed reducing the state property tax rate, from the
current 13.2 cents per $100 of assessed value, to 8.4 cents, the level of two
years ago. It would cost about $165
million a year, and return about $100 in taxes to the owner of a $200,000
home. The proposal also would increase
school construction funding to $250 million – the amount mentioned as both
needed and affordable recently by State Treasurer Nancy Kopp, and about $93
million more than the Governor’s capital budget proposes. That increase would be financed in part by a
bill to change the state’s tax law to require the payment of real estate
transfer and recordation taxes when corporations that own property are sold. See The
Post’s report.
Speaking of slot machines – the
subject seems to touch everything in Annapolis these days – The
Sun reported the leading members of the horse racing industry have gotten
their act together, to a point. Their newfound cooperation could help improve
the climate for slots legislation. The
Governor has submitted a bill similar to last year’s version (HB 255 and SB 205), and
there are reports that House leadership will submit their own very different
version soon. See this story
in the Gazette.
Legislation to clarify the kind
of stem cell research permitted in Maryland, that would prohibit human cloning
and that would provide funding for stem cell research, will appear next
week. We are part of a large and
growing coalition – Marylanders for the Advancement of Medical Research – that
will hold a press conference on Monday to explain and showcase the legislation,
to be sponsored by Sen. Paula Hollinger and Del. Sandy Rosenberg.
Finally, Sen. Lisa Gladden has
dropped in her version of the “Life Insurance Freedom to Travel Act” (SB 507), which
would prohibit insurers from refusing to insure, limiting coverage or raising
rates just because of an applicant’s past travel experiences. Del. Adrienne Mandel’s bill will appear
soon. When we have a bill hearing date,
we will need people to come to Annapolis and describe their experiences – this
means you (or at least someone you know).
Gun control legislation
The Jewish Council has always
supported sensible gun control measures.
This state and this nation’s tragic experience with gun violence, and
the extent to which that violence spills over into the lives of our children,
is unconscionable. We do not support
outlawing all guns or private gun ownership.
But we have worked for the passage of measures intended to reduce the
incidence of criminal gun violence and accidental deaths and injuries.
So far this session we have seen measures introduced to enhance the penalties for those who use assault weapons during a felony (SB 116); we also expect a return of legislation from last year that would ban the sale or importation to Maryland of military style semi-automatic assault weapons. And soon to be introduced will be a measure penalizing people who fail to report lost or stolen weapons.
We’ve
also supported Maryland’s now five-year-old ballistic imaging program, which is
in the process of creating a comprehensive computerized database of the shell
casings of all new guns purchased in the state. In 2003, about 4,000 guns were used in crimes in Maryland; about
2,400 of those guns originally were sold in Maryland. The ballistic imaging
database eventually will hold the keys to solving many of those crimes. We will continue to oppose legislation that
would prematurely end this program (SB 424), well
before its full potential can be achieved.
See this OpEd
from The Sun this week, by former Congressman Michael Barnes, now president
of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence.
Worth a read
The Great Mentioner has put
Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer (D-5th) in the spotlight for the
past few weeks. There was speculation in the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call
about a possible Hoyer run for governor in 2006. Set all that aside. In
the Montgomery Gazette this week, Mr. Hoyer
clearly dismisses all the speculation and vows that he will run for
reelection in 2006. But he will play an
important role in Democratic politics in the next election. Read all about it.
Also in the Gazette, this article
about Temptations
of the tobacco settlement details the competing plans for spending portions
of Maryland’s roughly $150 million share of the national tobacco
settlement. (Stem cell research is one
of those competing uses.)
Finally, catch up on the continuing
efforts by Jewish and Presbyterian leaders to address the controversy over
the issue of a selective economic divestment from Israel – by Jim Besser, in
the New York Jewish Week.