Same-Sex Marriage, MD's AAA Bond Rating, Offshore Wind, and "Diaper Need"

Friday, February 24, 2012

The bill legalizing same-sex marriage in Maryland is on its way to Governor Martin O'Malley's desk after being approved in the State Senate last night, on a vote of 25 to 22. O'Malley says he'll sign the bill within a week.

The measure wouldn't permit same-sex marriages to take place in Maryland until January of next year, and opponents are gearing up to try to stop the law from taking effect; they want to put the bill before voters. Opponents will need to gather about 56-thousand petition signatures by the end of June to get the measure on the November ballot. Every other state that has had a referendum on same-sex marriage has voted it down, and recent polls have shown that Maryland voters are about evenly split on the issue.

WYPR's Joel McCord was in Annapolis for last night's vote in the Senate; he has the story here. There's more here from marylandreporter.com, and here from the Baltimore Sun, and here from the Washington Post.  

For those living anywhere near the poverty line, the list of daily struggles is long - and mostly familiar: food, housing, and medical care. And for those in poverty with babies, there's another need: DIAPERS. Over the last decade, diaper banks have emerged in some 40 communities throughout the country. Baltimore’s not one of them - at least, not yet. In the meantime, a new nationwide effort is underway to bring awareness and unprecedented resources to the problem of “diaper need.” From Washington, Elizabeth Wynne Johnson filed this report for WYPR.

Maryland's coveted AAA Bond rating has been re-affirmed by the three major rating agencies; only seven other states hold AAA ratings from all three. State Treasurer Nancy Kopp says the news will help as Maryand gets ready to sell more than 920-million dollars worth of bonds -- the top rating will let the state save millions of dollars on those bonds because of the low interest rates it grants them. The bond sale starts on March 2nd (more here from the State Treasurer's Office and here from the Baltimore Business Journal).

Governor O'Malley appeared before the House Economic Matters committee yesterday, to push his proposal to encourage the development offshore wind farms (via the Washington Post).

Maryland's Court of Appeals has ruled that the state is not responsible for protecting students against allergens in school-provided lunches (via our wire service and the Baltimore Sun).

And: the head of the Baltimore Development Corporation says he's planning to retire. M. J. "Jay" Brodie has led the BDC for 16 years; he says he'll step down as soon as a replacement for him is hired (via the Baltimore Sun).