Citing significant increases in the cost of housing, Washington State joined California and Oregon in enacting statewide rent control. 

On May 8, 2025, Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed House Bill 1217 into law, establishing statewide rent control. The legislation caps annual rent increases at 7% plus inflation or 10%, whichever is lower, for a period of 15 years. A stricter 5% cap applies to manufactured homes with no expiration date. The law also mandates a 90-day notice for rent hikes and prohibits increases during the first year of tenancy. Exemptions include new constructions for their first 12 years, owner-occupied small multifamily units, public housing, and certain low-income developments. Enforcement provisions allow tenants or the state attorney general to pursue legal action against violations, with penalties up to $7,500 per infraction.

Supporters argue that the measure provides much-needed stability for renters in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets. Governor Ferguson emphasized the need to prevent residents from being priced out of their homes. However, opponents, including the Rental Housing Association of Washington, contend that the law could deter investment in rental properties, reduce housing supply, and lead to higher prices and lower quality. They are considering legal challenges, particularly concerning the law’s immediate effect without prior inflation data from the Department of Commerce, which is due by June 1.

In Maryland

Maryland remains divided on rent control policies, with the General Assembly showing reluctance to expand certain local authorities while also signaling interest in placing limits on others. One of the most closely watched bills this session was the Good Cause Eviction Act (HB709/SB651), which would have allowed counties to require landlords to provide a legally defined justification for non-renewing leases. Although the bill ultimately failed, lawmakers debated a potential compromise that would allow counties to implement either rent control or good cause eviction requirements—but not both.

While no statewide rent control proposal has gained meaningful traction, local-level rent regulation continues to be a subject of active debate in several Maryland counties. The conversations reflect ongoing tension between tenant protections and concerns about impacts on housing supply and investment.

Read the full story in Governing. 

Read the full story in the New York Times.

The collapse of the nomination of Edward Martin as U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia — and the surprise announcement of FOX News personality Jeanine Pirro as his replacement — has triggered a unique and mixed wave of reaction from former prosecutors, President Trump’s critics and people involved in the U.S. Capitol riot prosecutions.

The selection of Pirro, an ardent loyalist of Mr. Trump and a cable news fixture who spread claims of a rigged 2020 election, has triggered a wave of criticism from some Democrats. But the implosion of Martin’s nomination for the top D.C. prosecutor post has drawn celebratory statements from Mr. Trump’s other critics and potentially softened some of the backlash against the choice of Pirro.

Martin, a “Stop the Steal” advocate and MAGA political activist, was among the crowd outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. He defended Capitol riot cases, including the case of an accused Nazi-sympathizer, and made frequent appearances on Russian-linked media outlets and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s program.

Named acting U.S. Attorney on Inauguration Day 2025 by Mr. Trump, Martin promptly fired prosecutors who handled some of the Jan. 6 criminal cases. In the weeks before it became clear his confirmation was blocked by at least one Republican Senator, Martin frequently posted on social media, including one X post in which he controversially referred to U.S. Attorneys as “Trump’s lawyers.”

“Ed Martin’s appointment was about rewriting the history of January 6, so having him specifically gone is a huge step forward, even if he’s replaced by another TV lawyer,” said Brendan Ballou, a former Justice Department attorney who handled Jan. 6 criminal cases.

Ballou, who a year ago was immersed in the Capitol riot case of a group from Lakeland, Florida, who’d gone on the run from authorities shortly after their charges were filed, told CBS News that Martin is better suited for a position where, instead, “He can just tweet.” Ballou resigned from his position shortly after Martin was named acting U.S. Attorney in January.

As for Martin’s would-be successor, Pirro — who is a former judge and prosecutor — Ballou said, “I think these TV lawyers will struggle to get the respect of the judges.”

Although Congressional Democrats issued waves of statements and comments criticizing Martin, the response to Pirro’s selection was more muted in its first 48 hours.

Sen. Adam Schiff, a California Democrat who led opposition against Martin’s nomination, responded tersely to Pirro’s selection, posting on social media, “Because the other Fox News host in this administration is doing such a stellar job.”

One former assistant U.S. Attorney who worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia told CBS News there were no immediate red flags about Pirro that compared to concerns about Martin.

Another former assistant U.S. Attorney said Pirro would have to shift from her provocative TV pronouncements to abide by the Justice Department’s tradition of not “tarnishing someone’s name in public until we can prove it in court beyond a reasonable doubt, they committed a crime. Yet on her show, Pirro has time and time again amplified truly wild conspiracy theories.” 

Sen. Thom Tillis, the North Carolina Republican who publicly declared his opposition to Martin’s nomination, promptly posted a statement of support for Pirro, an indication that GOP opposition might be non-existent for her service as U.S. Attorney.

Michael Caputo, an aide to Martin, told CBS News, “Many of us are angry that Senator Tillis broke faith with President Trump, but Jeanine Pirro is a tremendous pick as successor to Ed Martin. I’m also excited for Ed’s next role with the Justice Department. I’m definitely buying more popcorn.”

Martin will instead be assigned to a Justice Department task force and will serve as a pardon attorney. 

The U.S. Attorney for Washington D.C. has a unique portfolio, including federal corruption cases, high-profile defendants and a large set of local criminal prosecutions in the D.C. Superior Court. Pirro will be handling a distinctively broad set of cases, ranging from government fraud to local burglaries and domestic violence.

In the days after the announcement, the response to Pirro’s nomination fell along party lines.

Patrick Mara, a Republican party leader in Washington, D.C., told CBS News: “I am optimistic on her nomination and hope she uses her prosecutorial experience to the fullest extend to crackdown on violent crime in D.C.” 

“We look forward to working with her on this. The D.C. Council has created an environment where violent crime is able to flourish,” Mara said.

Rep. Glenn Ivey, a Maryland Democrat who once served as a federal prosecutor, told CBS News that the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia is a very important posting.

“From local violent crimes and community intervention programs to national security matters and the January 6th insurrectionists, this prosecutor’s job needs serious courtroom skills, managerial experience and sound judgement not just looking good on a TV talk show, salacious soundbite or worse yet – uttering of outright falsehoods on voting machines or other issues important to the American people,” he said.

For Jan. 6 victims and police responders, the collapse of Martin’s nomination outweighed concerns about Pirro.

“I’m glad that Mr. Martin won’t be serving the people of Washington, D.C,” Harry Dunn, a former Capitol Police officer who testified at a public hearing of the Jan. 6 Select Committee, told CBS News. “For him to even have been nominated is disgusting considering how he feels about January 6th.”

Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat who was a member of the Jan. 6 committee, was critical of Martin, but also has blasted the selection of Pirro.

“The U.S. Attorney in D.C. should have unquestioned commitment to justice, public integrity and the truth,” he said. “Jeanine Pirro has used her platform at Fox News to promote dangerous conspiracy theories and to traffic in election lies so outlandish they landed her network in court and cost it hundreds of millions of dollars. America deserves a serious public lawyer of the highest scruples, not another election-denying Fox Corporation propagandist.”

The Justice Department did respond to requests for information about the timing of a transition from Martin to Pirro at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington, D.C.

Laurel police say they stopped a woman as she purposely drove on a closed road through crowds of people getting ready for the start of the Main Street Festival.

Officials told News4 no festival goers were hurt. An officer had minor injuries but is expected to be okay.

Police say The woman, 28-year-old Kai DeBerry-Bostick, was warned multiple times not to drive through closed roads, but she ignored their commands, police said.

Her car was parked within the perimeter of the festival and she insisted she had to get out to go to work.

Officials released body worn camera video showing the officer’s interaction with the woman before she pulled down the yellow tape and took off.

An officer could be heard offering to call her a taxi before she started driving. As she drove, an officer could be heard repeatedly shouting, “Stop” and “Get out of the car.”

Another video shot by a vendor at the festival showed how the incident ended: police pulled DeBerry-Bostick out of her car and leading her away in handcuffs

“I just didn’t know where this was coming from,” said Richard Friend, who shot the video of her arrest. “A bizarre way to start our morning for sure.”

It happened near his Laurel History Boys booth at the festival.

“Hearing the commotion of people yelling “stop,” hearing her blow the horn, you immediately go to the worst case scenario, you’re thinking someone is gonna drive through the crowd,” Friend said. “But she was driving very slowly. We even thought, so not one of those, but didn’t know what was happening.”

Two weeks ago, Montgomery County police stopped a woman who allegedly tried to drive through a 10K race route.

Friend said he didn’t feel DeBerry-Bostick was trying to hurt anyone.

“we’re with the Laurel History Boys, so we’re all about history. This is the first time in 44 years of the Main Street Festival that we’ve had an incident like that,” Friend said.

Police say DeBerry-Bostick is facing multiple charges including assault resisting arrest and reckless endangerment.