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Let’s make Maryland ‘open for business’ again | GUEST COMMENTARY

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Let’s make Maryland ‘open for business’ again | GUEST COMMENTARY


Last month, Google unveiled plans to invest more than $1 billion to expand its data centers in Virginia. The investment promises to create hundreds of jobs and serve as an economic engine, generating tax revenue not only in Loudon and Prince William counties, where the centers are to be located, but throughout the entire state. For Virginia, this sort of economic development is not unprecedented. The state is currently ranked as the second-best state for business in the nation.

Meanwhile, Maryland stands at a crossroads, holding the necessary ingredients to be one of the most competitive states but consistently losing out to those around us. Maryland beat Virginia in job growth for four consecutive years between 2015-2018.  Maryland was open for business then, and we can be again.

With a prime location in the mid-Atlantic, world-renowned academic research institutions such as Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland, and a highly skilled workforce that ranks among the best in the nation, it should be a top destination for businesses. Yet Maryland does not rank in the top 10.

Our inability to attract business has a tangible impact on the lives of everyday Marylanders. In January, our comptroller released a report indicating that our economy has not seen substantial growth since 2017. Between the lack of new economic opportunities and persistently surging costs, we are witnessing a decline in the state’s residents and a widening gap between Virginia and Maryland’s economic growth.

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As we look to reverse this trend, Maryland must do more to incentivize growth and reduce bureaucratic obstacles.

By offering tax incentives and grants, the Commonwealth was able to reign in billions of dollars in investment from companies like Amazon. More broadly, in 2023, the industry provided the state with over 26,000 jobs, $640 million in state tax revenue, and $47 billion in total economic output.

Recognizing the value data centers can bring, former Gov. Larry Hogan took proactive steps to provide tax incentives to encourage data center development in 2020. While current Gov. Wes Moore is continuing the momentum by providing new incentives in this year’s session, such as streamlining regulatory processes for the industry, we have not addressed the other central issue for Maryland’s economy: overregulation.

This past session, that issue became even worse. Counterintuitive to Governor Moore’s goal of bringing data center growth to our state and uplifting small businesses, lawmakers passed significant, overreaching data privacy legislation. While their intent was reasonable, the legislation they finalized will severely hamstring small business owners across the state, while continuing to pull back the welcome mat from future investments.

Contrary to Virginia’s sensible and clear opt-out provision, Maryland’s new privacy bill essentially calls for our state’s businesses to secure opt-in agreements for processes like customized online experiences and ad measurement. Not even California, the first state to enact major privacy legislation, requires such a provision. As a result, only larger firms with deep pockets will be able to effectively reach their target audiences online and manage the compliance requirements required to do so — harming the vibrant competition in our state’s economy and putting small, locally grown businesses at a steep disadvantage.

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As Governor Moore works toward welcoming meaningful investments in the state, we should hope the administration keeps in mind the need to improve our competitive positioning in the region. To break this trend, our course is clear: take a page from Virginia’s playbook and cut out unnecessary red tape while encouraging the growth of promising new industries. By taking these sensible steps, we can unleash Maryland’s full potential and once again make Maryland Open for Business.

Michael Gill (mgill@evergreenadvisorsllc.com) served as Maryland’s secretary of commerce from 2015-’19 and 2022-’23. He also served as the state’s secretary of business and economic development in 2015, among other roles.



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See Snowfall Totals By Town In Maryland

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See Snowfall Totals By Town In Maryland


December’s first winter storm brought varying amounts of snow to parts of Maryland, from an inch at Baltimore-Washington International Airport to 6 inches in parts of Baltimore County, according to preliminary snowfall totals from the National Weather Service.

Numerous school districts and government offices opened late on Monday due to the storm’s impact on area roads.

The snowfall has ended, and the National Weather Service said the forecast for the coming week shows no chance of a white Christmas, so far, with high temperatures reaching the 50s at least two days.

Here are snowfall totals, in inches, reported by the National Weather Service as of Monday morning for portions of Maryland:

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Anne Arundel County



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Frigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland

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Frigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland




Frigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland – CBS Baltimore

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Frigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland

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4 takeaways from Michigan Basketball’s 101-83 win at Maryland

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4 takeaways from Michigan Basketball’s 101-83 win at Maryland


It wasn’t a 40-point win like the Michigan Wolverines have been used to, but they put together a strong second half to take down the Maryland Terrapins, 101-83, on the road Saturday night.

The Wolverines haven’t had a true road test in over a month, and it took 30 minutes to shake off the dust. While Maryland had a strong night from the three-point line to flirt with an upset, Michigan stuck to its game plan and went on a run in the final 10 minutes of the contest to win the game.

There is a lot to unpack, so here are four takeaways:

David “Diggi” Coit legacy first half

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The Terrapins gave Michigan its first deficit going into halftime this season, and it can be largely thanks to point guard David “Diggi” Coit. The Northern Illinois and Kansas transfer was on another level in the first half, scoring 22 points on 7-for-13 shooting, including six makes from three.

Coit wasn’t just sitting in the corner either. He was creating his own shot from everywhere on the hardwood, going up against Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau, Yaxel Lendeborg, and even hitting one in the face of Morez Johnson Jr., all of whom are taller than the graduate transfer.

He continued his hot streak to start the second half, but eventually cooled off and finished with 31 points. It was a remarkable showing, and it should be a good sign for the Terrapins going forward if he can produce every night like Saturday.

As for Michigan, it was a good test to face a player who could not miss for a half, and learn how to adjust at halftime to take away the threat. It will happen again, and as Dusty May always says, it is better for it to happen now than in March.

Michigan hasn’t played a close game since Nov. 14. Its reserve players have seen a ton of action, but it came at the expense of the Wolverines having to put games away at a consistent rate. While Maryland put the pressure on Michigan for 30 minutes, the final 10 are what gives May confidence in a potential national championship for this team.

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The Wolverines shot 8-for-10 from the field to balloon their lead from five to 15 in a matter of minutes. It was an uncomfortable, yet promising finish for the Wolverines.

When many top teams would start forcing shots, Michigan continue to attack the paint and get the ball in the hands of its go-to players, capitalizing on a Maryland cold streak to go from a deficit to a double-digit lead late in the game.

There are a lot of talented teams on Michigan’s schedule, and there will be a few more matchups with spunky teams like Maryland that will force the Wolverines to lock in. They passed this test and can rest easy as they face some lighter non-conference opponents before the New Year.

When Michigan has needed a spark since its tournament in Las Vegas, the Wolverines have turned to their top transfer portal get — Yaxel Lendeborg. He led Michigan scorers with 13 points in the first half, but coming out of halftime down seven points, he was on a whole other level. Lendeborg put the ball in his own hands with 20 minutes to go, scoring 10 straight points to start the second, bringing Michigan within one point.

As Maryland continued to keep pace, Lendeborg would not let up and put together seven more points to get to 29 points for the night and 16 for the half with 11 minutes still to go.

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When Maryland started double-teaming Lendeborg, he started spreading the wealth and giving his teammates open-opportunities. Elliot Cadeau knocked down a couple of shots, L.J. Cason made back-to-back threes and Mara was putting on a show with reverse dunks and alley-oops. Before long, Michigan held a 15-point lead.

While it was tough-sledding for most of the team in College Park, Michigan showed it only needed a couple of guys to be in rhythm to keep pace and even lead opponents who were having their best shooting night.

Michigan continued dominance in the paint

You can try to beat Michigan with the three-ball, but it is going to be very hard to claim ultimate victory if you can’t stop it in the paint. The Terps shot 55 percent from behind the arc in the first half and 48 percent in the second half, but Michigan didn’t mess around down low in the paint.

The Wolverines dominated Maryland, 20-10, in the paint in the first half, and put on an even stronger showing in the second with 24 points down low. It didn’t help that Maryland best front court player, Pharrel Payne, went down with a knee injury in the first half. As a result, Michigan quietly continued to grow its lead when the Terps’ threes stopped falling.

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Between Mara, Will Tschetter, Johnson and Lendeborg, the options are limitless for the Wolverines in the post.

After gritting it out to stay undefeated, Michigan heads back home and will get a week off before facing La Salle on Sunday, Dec. 21 (4 p.m., BTN).



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