Maryland
Maryland’s 6% sales tax is due for an expansion, top legislative leader says
A serious conversation about expanding Maryland’s 6% sales tax is not just financially prudent but also “morally responsible” because lawmakers have already approved billions in public education spending without a way to pay for it, a top Democratic leader said Monday.
The change — which, as introduced, would actually lower the tax to 5% while expanding it to additional goods and services — is promised to fail in the Maryland General Assembly session scheduled to end April 8.
But House Majority Leader David Moon said his plan to raise up to $3 billion through the sales tax change is intended to launch a debate on how lawmakers can address a ballooning budget deficit while also keeping its commitment to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future.
Legislators approved the education plan in 2020 without a full funding mechanism, and the billions of dollars in annual costs are in question after funding runs out in three years.
“I was among those who was resistant to the concept of us voting for all that Blueprint spending, the public education investment, which is what it is, and then leaving town without also simultaneously voting in the way to pay for it,” Moon, who voted for the Blueprint, said in a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on his bill. “Now here we are. We split the votes up, so folks got to take the freebie and vote for the education spending and we are left to have the adult conversation about what to do next.”
Moon’s plan elicited fierce opposition from Republicans and a wide range of business owners who said everything from legal services to car washes would be newly subject to the sales tax. Educational and health services as well as religious and nonprofit organizations would continue to not be subject to the tax but everything else would be included unless otherwise exempted. That would mean new taxes on hair cuts, spas, veterinary services, financial services and much more, according to a legislative fiscal analysis.
Mike O’Halloran, a lobbyist in Maryland for the National Federation of Independent Business, was among many who told the committee the changes would severely impact small businesses and consumers.
“There is not a single aspect of Marylanders’ lives this tax hike wouldn’t touch. Things like cutting grass, cutting hair, even the clown sculpting balloon animals at the county fair, is getting hit by this,” O’Halloran said.
Importantly, opponents this year also include Senate President Bill Ferguson and Gov. Wes Moore, both Democrats who have said they do not want to consider broad-based tax hikes this year.
Their resistance means any changes to the sales tax — as well as a sweeping income and corporate tax hike known as the Fair Share for Maryland Act — are on track to come up short this session.
Still, House Democrats have taken a more aggressive approach. The state is facing a more-than $3 billion structural deficit within four years, a problem that worsened just last week with a $255 million lowering of expectations for revenue. Another $3.3 billion transportation shortfall is putting at risk upcoming infrastructure improvements across the state.
“We just have to have the tough discussions and figure it out quite frankly,” House Ways and Means Committee Chair Vanessa Atterbeary, a Howard County Democrat, said in the hearing Monday.
Moore, Ferguson and other Senate Democrats have not ruled out tax increases in future years.
The governor’s own top legislative advisor, former Democratic House Majority Leader Eric Luedtke, was the last prime sponsor of the sales tax plan that Moon introduced this year.
Luedtke’s bill in 2020 similarly featured a protracted, opposition-fueled hearing in Annapolis and then did not pass out of committee. In both that year and now, no senator has proposed a similar bill in their chamber, another sign of the legislation’s slim chances.
Moon, of Montgomery County, is in his first year as the leader of the House of Delegates’ supermajority of Democrats.
Fielding a litany of questions about services that could be taxed, Moon said he took the broadest possible approach to start but that he’s open to significant changes, including exemptions for vital services like housing construction or funeral costs.
“Should we pull ‘death taxes’ out of there? I don’t like the sound of that. So sure, throw that on the chopping block,” Moon said, responding to a question from Baltimore County Republican Del. Bob Long about the potential sales tax on funeral services. “Again, this is the conversation we need to have.”
One amendment Moon is proposing immediately would exempt business services where the customer is another business, a change that would cut the largest portion of the proposed new revenue but that could limit the downstream effects on consumers, he said. That would result in something of a “middle option” for revenue. An even lighter option, he said, would be an approach where lawmakers selectively add services that could be taxed rather than starting broadly and exempting others.
Those kinds of details will likely have to be sorted out in the coming years, if at all, as Democrats who control both chambers and the governor’s office work out how to solve the budget problems.
Moore’s $63.1 billion spending plan for the fiscal year beginning July 1 intends to balance the budget by cutting some programs, pulling from reserves and borrowing more. Senate leaders who had the first crack at amending that plan presented their version Friday with no major changes. They’re expected to pass it to the House this week and then negotiate a final product before the annual session ends next month.
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A Maryland expungement clinic is helping residents take a critical step in clearing their criminal records.
Loyola University hosted its latest expungement clinic, in partnership with Maryland Legal Aid, to provide free legal assistance to those looking to clear eligible charges from their records.
“I’ve just always been an advocate for representation, advocacy, and that’s something that I’ve always been passionate about,” said Loyola pre-law student Ebahi Adubor.
This was the seventh expungement clinic hosted by Loyola and Maryland Legal Aid.
So far, more than 230 petitions have been filed through this partnership.
“I know that when I’m a lawyer, pro bono work is something that I see myself doing, and I find it special to have this opportunity now,” Adubor said.
What happens at an expungement clinic?
At the expungement clinic, volunteer attorneys help participants review their records and file petitions on-site.
Lucy Mac Gabhann, one of the legal professionals assisting at the clinic, says clearing a record can transform lives.
“Somebody can clear their record, they can get a better apartment, living situation, they can get a better job,” Gabhann said. “It really just opens up doors. It’s often not just a change for one person, but for a family and a community.”
Are you eligible for expungement?
According to the Maryland Courts, to be eligible for expungement, you must have completed your sentence or punishments. Expungement of certain misdemeanor convictions can be filed after five years, while certain felony convictions can be filed after seven years.
Here’s a list of what is eligible for expungement.
Seeking a second chance
Those looking to wipe out a stain on their criminal record say this expungement clinic gives them a second chance.
“By no means does it define me,” said Clayton, who attended the clinic. “That was like 17 years ago. I don’t want people looking back on my previous experiences in life and judging me today.”
Wayne Williams, who also attended the expungement clinic, said his past mistake has blocked him from advancements in life.
“it’s been blocking me from doing things that I might want to do,” Williams said. “Your record is essential.”
Maryland’s Kevin Willard accepted Villanova’s offer to become the program’s next head coach, sources confirmed to ESPN, ending more than a week of speculation.
An official announcement could come as early as Sunday.
Maryland just completed one of its best seasons in the past 20 years, earning a 4-seed in the NCAA tournament and making a run to the Sweet 16 before falling to top-seeded Florida. The Terrapins finished 27-9 overall and 14-6 in the Big Ten and were ranked in the top 10 in most predictive metrics. After a 1-3 start to Big Ten play, Maryland lost just four games to Big Ten opponents the rest of the season by a combined nine points.
Willard spent three seasons in College Park, going 65-39 with two NCAA tournament appearances.
He made headlines before Maryland’s first-round NCAA tournament game against Grand Canyon when he essentially broke the news of Maryland athletic director Damon Evans leaving for SMU and explained why he hasn’t signed a new contract in College Park.
“I need to make fundamental changes to the program,” Willard said. “That’s what I’m focused on right now. That’s why probably a deal hasn’t got done because I want to see — I need to see fundamental changes done. I want this program to be great. I want it to be the best in the country, I want to win a national championship, but there’s things that need to change.
“I need to make sure that we are where we are with NIL, and rev share is not where we’ve been with NIL over the past two years. We’ve been one of the worst, if not lowest, in the NIL in the last two years. So, that’s first and foremost. I also have to make a fundamental change where I can do the things that I want to do with my program. I wanted to spend an extra night in New York this year to celebrate Christmas with my team and I was told that we can’t do that because it’s too expensive. So, I don’t know how we can be a top-tier program and I can’t spend one extra night in New York because it’s too expensive.”
As Maryland knocked off Grand Canyon and Colorado State to advance to Willard’s first Sweet 16 and the first for the Terps since 2016, the head coach’s message didn’t change. He acknowledged after Maryland’s Sweet 16 loss to Florida on Thursday that he didn’t know his next step.
“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Willard said. “I’ll be honest with you. I haven’t talked to my agent. I haven’t talked to my wife.”
At Villanova, Willard will replace Kyle Neptune, who failed to reach the NCAA tournament in any of his three seasons in charge of the Wildcats. Neptune took over in 2022 after the sudden retirement of Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright, who led Villanova to two national championships and four Final Four appearances.
It marks a return to the Big East for Willard, a Long Island, New York, native who spent 12 seasons as the head coach at Seton Hall. He led the Pirates to five NCAA tournament appearances and a share of the Big East regular-season title in 2020 — when the program was on track for its highest NCAA tournament seed in nearly 30 years before the tournament was canceled due to the pandemic.
Before taking over at Seton Hall, Willard was the head coach at Iona for three seasons and an assistant coach under Rick Pitino at Louisville and with the Boston Celtics. Willard’s father, Ralph, had previously spent time on Pitino’s staff at multiple stops.
News of Willard accepting Villanova’s offer was first reported by Inside Maryland Sports.
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