News
-
In the News: Sarbanes Emphasizes Election Reform in Meeting With Howard County Lawmakers
March 31, 2021
Sarbanes Emphasizes Election Reform in Meeting With Howard County Lawmakers
Bennett Leckrone, Maryland MattersU.S. Rep. John P. Sarbanes (D-Md.) touted his sweeping federal election overhaul to state legislators from Howard County in a Wednesday morning meeting, saying the proposed reforms are the “most requested anti-corruption legislation” ever passed by the House of Representatives.
Sarbanes is the primary architect of the For the People Act, an omnibus proposal that would cut back on gerrymandering, expand absentee ballot access and modernize voter registration. Those are just a few of the slew of election reform efforts included in the legislation, which is currently in the Senate after passing the House in early March.
-
In the News: Maryland Lawmakers Announce Emergency Funding For Baltimore's Most Vulnerable
March 30, 2021
Maryland Lawmakers Announce Emergency Funding For Baltimore's Most Vulnerable
William Smink, WBFF (FOX)On Tuesday, U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen along side Congressmen Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes and Kweisi Mfume came together to announce $15.45 million in emergency federal funding to reimburse the delivery of essential goods and shelter to the city of Baltimore's most vulnerable residents.
The award serves as a total federal cost share reimbursement for services that Baltimore city provided to residents earlier in the pandemic.
-
In the News: Biden promises tight US-Greek ties
March 26, 2021
Biden promises tight US-Greek ties
EkathimeriniOn the occasion of the bicentennial of the Greek War of Independence, the White House organized an online get-together with President Joe Biden and prominent members of the Greek-American Community Thursday.
The event was coordinated by Biden’s press secretary, Jen Psaki. Biden regretted not being able to host the event in the White House, adding that he could see a lot of good friends on the screen.
-
In the News: Md. Congressional Democrats Urge USPS to Fix ‘One of Worst Postal Backlogs in the Country’
March 25, 2021
Md. Congressional Democrats Urge USPS to Fix ‘One of Worst Postal Backlogs in the Country’
Bryan Gallion, Montgomery County MediaMaryland congressional Democrats called on the U.S. Postal Service to address mail delivery problems that the state has faced in recent months following a meeting they had Monday with agency officials.
The state has “experienced one of the worst postal backlogs in the country,” the federal lawmakers said in a statement Tuesday, “and there are no excuses for the widespread breakdown of mail delivery.”
-
In the News: Officials break ground on latest phase of Port Covington development
March 24, 2021
Officials break ground on latest phase of Port Covington development
Bryna Zumer, WBFF Online (FOX)Officials and community leaders broke ground today on the latest phase of South Baltimore's Port Covington project, which promises to bring 1.1 million square feet of new development, including 89 affordable-housing units.
This latest phase is called 1B and will feature vertical construction, according to a press release.
-
In the News: Maryland Democrats Pay Tribute To AFA On 11th Anniversary
March 24, 2021
Maryland Democrats Pay Tribute To AFA On 11th Anniversary
Dan Shalin, Owings Mills PatchRep. John Sarbanes, D-MD, marked the 11th anniversary of the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Tuesday by discussing how the legislation has been strengthened thanks to the passage of American Rescue Plan (ARP), the $1.6 trillion relief package signed into law earlier this month.
Speaking at a House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing, Sarbanes said the coronavirus relief bill is another step in achieving the goals of the AFA, helping more Americans gain access to high-quality and affordable health care.
-
In the News: Bipartisan, bicameral legislation seeks to support federal firefighters
March 23, 2021
Bipartisan, bicameral legislation seeks to support federal firefighters
Douglas Clark, Homeland Preparedness NewsSens. Tom Carper (D-DE), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Jon Tester (D-MT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD) reintroduced legislation last week designed to support federal firefighters by correcting disparity between federal firefighters and state, local and municipal firefighters.
The Federal Firefighter Flexibility and Fairness Act would allow federal firefighters to engage in trade time, enabling two firefighters to trade shifts without affecting pay or using annual leave.
-
In the News: Federal American Rescue Plan includes millions for county, transit, education
March 19, 2021
Federal American Rescue Plan includes millions for county, transit, education
Briana Adhikusuma, Bethesda MagazineMore than $303 million is expected to come to Montgomery County and its municipalities through the new federal American Rescue Plan.
The county also will benefit through hundreds of millions of dollars more for local transit projects serving the region and for local schools.
-
In the News: Biden Has One Shot To Stop Republicans’ Voter Suppression Crusade
March 16, 2021
Biden Has One Shot To Stop Republicans’ Voter Suppression Crusade
Eric Lutz, Vanity Fair ('Hive')Earlier this month, Joe Biden signed an executive order to ensure that Americans’ right to vote is “protected and defended”—a move that came as Republicans across the country intensify their attacks on the voting rights of Black Americans and other marginalized groups, who already face systemic barriers. “We’ve seen an unprecedented insurrection in our Capitol and a brutal attack on our democracy on January 6—a never-before-seen effort to ignore, undermine, and undo the will of the people,” Biden said in a video statement. “It’s been followed by an all-out assault on the right to vote in state legislatures all across the country,” he continued, citing the hundreds of bills that have been introduced in 43 states to dramatically roll back voting rights. “We cannot let them succeed.”
But Biden could find himself helping Republicans do just that if he doesn’t change his position on the Senate filibuster. Led by progressives, a growing chorus of Democrats have been calling to abolish or at least modify the filibuster to make it harder for Mitch McConnell and the GOP minority to obstruct their agenda. Those demands have taken on a greater sense of urgency amid Republican disenfranchisement efforts. With state lawmakers across the country using Donald Trump’s bogus election fraud claims to push wildly restrictive voting laws, and the Supreme Court, to which he appointed three justices, potentially on the cusp of dealing another blow to the Voting Rights Act, Democrats and activists have rallied behind HR1, a sweeping bill to secure elections, expand voting access, and restore the pro-democracy law named for the late John Lewis. It passed the House March 3. “At a time when Americans across the political spectrum are demanding real change and accountability from their elected officials, it’s more important than ever to deliver on the promise of HR1 and restore faith in our democracy,” Representative John Sarbanes, who introduced the bill, said upon its passage. “We have no time to waste.”
-
In the News: Senate Gets Landmark Voting Legislation, But Partisanship Poses Steep Challenges
March 15, 2021
Senate Gets Landmark Voting Legislation, But Partisanship Poses Steep Challenges
Jennifer Mandato, Capital News ServiceA House-passed package overhauling voting, improving election security and reforming campaign finance laws is now in the Senate, where deep partisan divisions spell an uncertain fate for the landmark bill.
H.R. 1, also known as the For the People Act of 2021, is sponsored by Rep. John Sarbanes, D-Towson, and co-sponsored by every House Democrat. The measure passed the House March 3 on a 220-210 party-line vote.
-
In the News: How Many GOP House Members Are Mired in Conflicts of Interest? No One Knows
March 12, 2021
How Many GOP House Members Are Mired in Conflicts of Interest? No One Knows
Jon Skolnik, NewsweekAfter Congress passed the Paycheck Protection Program last year, pumping billions of dollars into small businesses struggling under the weight of the pandemic, reports surfaced that sizable chunks of that money went right back into the pockets of Congress. A slew of members, many of them already wealthy, received millions in federal aid for their personal businesses ventures under the auspices of job-saving. That reanimated debate about a longstanding, conflict of interest entrenched within the legislative branch: Members of Congress can hold positions in for-profit corporations while officially serving their constituents in Washington.
Senate ethics rules address this conflict —but the House does not. Senators are prohibited from "from serving as officers or members of the board of any publicly held or publicly regulated corporation, financial institution, or business entity." No such stricture applies to members of the House. Rules restrict all members of both chambers from making 15% in excess of their salaries in "outside earned income," but passive income derived from investments and holdings doesn't necessarily count.
-
In the News: Congressional working group to explore designating a Chesapeake National Recreation Area
March 11, 2021
Congressional working group to explore designating a Chesapeake National Recreation Area
Christine Condon, The Baltimore SunMaryland congressional leaders announced a working group that will consider establishing a National Recreation Area for the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
The recreation area would be managed by the National Park Service, which proponents say would make additional resources available for conservation and recreation in the bay area.
-
In the News: As states crack down on voting, advocates look to Congress
March 10, 2021
As states crack down on voting, advocates look to Congress
Benjamin Barber, Facing SouthThis past weekend marked the 56th anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama, when voting rights marchers were brutally assaulted by law enforcement officers while crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Broadcast on national television, images of state troopers attacking peaceful demonstrators, including John Lewis, a civil rights icon who went on to become a long-serving Democratic congressman from Georgia, shifted public opinion and galvanized Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA).
This year's commemoration — the first since Lewis's death last year from cancer — took place as many state legislatures are ramping up an assault on voting rights.
-
In the News: Massive national COVID relief bill a ‘lifeline’ for Baltimore, mayor says
March 10, 2021
Massive national COVID relief bill a ‘lifeline’ for Baltimore, mayor says
Jeff Barker, The Baltimore SunA $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill that Congress passed Wednesday contains an “unprecedented” level of funding for Baltimore and other Maryland cities and counties that have been clamoring for help after seeing revenues plunge because of the coronavirus pandemic, state lawmakers said.
“This is my 15th year and I don’t know of a more important bill that we passed,” said U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, a Democrat from Baltimore. “The aid to Baltimore City is unprecedented. We have not had a bill that provides such a significant amount of help to our urban centers.”
-
In the News: Election reform: Judge Sarbanes’ proposal on merit, not partisan advantage
March 5, 2021
Election reform: Judge Sarbanes’ proposal on merit, not partisan advantage
The Editorial Board, The Baltimore SunThere has always something essentially quixotic in Rep. John Sarbanes’ “For The People Act,” its title as idealistic as anything found on its nearly 800 pages of content. In sum, what H.R.1 attempts to do is fix much of what is broken in this nation’s election system, chiefly by making voting more accessible, ending partisan redistricting, raising ethical standards, and exposing and reducing the influence of big money in politics.
Americans should be celebrating its passage in the U.S. House of Representatives late Wednesday and giving thanks to the 58-year-old Maryland Democrat, the eldest son of the late Sen. Paul Sarbanes, who has made this worthy cause a personal crusade. Don Quixote may have tilted at windmills, but John Sarbanes went after something real and far more daunting: a political system that runs on money and disenfranchises far too many Americans.
-
In the News: Rep. Sarbanes: Failure to pass HR 1 'would split our democracy in two'
March 5, 2021
Rep. Sarbanes: Failure to pass HR 1 'would split our democracy in two'
CNN ('Tonight with Don Lemon')CNN's Don Lemon speaks to Rep. John Sarbanes (D-MD) about HR 1, a sweeping government, ethics and election bill that, among other things, would counter state-level Republican efforts to restrict voting access, which was just passed in the Democratic-led House.
-
In the News: House Democrats Renew Calls for Bill Giving Election Agency More Funding and Responsibility
October 22, 2020
House Democrats Renew Calls for Bill Giving Election Agency More Funding and Responsibility
Courtney Bublé, The Government ExecutiveFollowing news from intelligence officials on Wednesday evening of foreign election interference attempts, several House lawmakers are renewing their calls for the Senate to take up their massive reform bill that would bolster the funding and responsibilities of the nation’s elections clearinghouse.
Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and FBI Director Christopher Wray gave an unexpected press briefing on Wednesday—13 days out from the election—in which they said that Iran and Russia obtained voter registration information in attempts to meddle in U.S. elections. They said that voting remains secure, but House lawmakers renewed the call for the Senate to take up their “2019 For the People Act,” which the chamber passed in March 2019 and has specific provisions to beef up the Election Assistance Commission.
-
In the News: Your Voice: Congressman John Sarbanes
October 21, 2020
Your Voice: Congressman John Sarbanes
WBFF-TV (FOX)Another coronavirus relief bill isn't looking promising, at least not right now.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell warned the White House not to make a deal with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi before the November election.
U.S. Representative for Maryland's 3rd congressional district, Congressman John Sarbanes, joins us to explain the holdup, and talk about the second and final presidential debate.
-
In the News: The Wealthy Getting Less Scrutiny On Taxes
October 19, 2020
The Wealthy Getting Less Scrutiny On Taxes
Scott Horsley, NPR ('All Things Considered')ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: A teacher, a small-business owner and a retiree who complained they paid more in federal income taxes than President Trump are now gracing campaign billboards in swing states around the country. The ads follow reporting by The New York Times that Trump paid little or no federal income tax in most of the last 20 years. Trump has denied that report, but as NPR's Scott Horsley reports, the wealthy are getting less scrutiny from the tax collector with each passing year.
-
In the News: Kudos for Rescuing Chesapeake Bay Program
October 8, 2020
Kudos for Rescuing Chesapeake Bay Program
Kaitlyn Leitherer, The Baltimore Sun (LTE)I want to voice my support and congratulations to Rep. John Sarbanes, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and everyone who worked tirelessly to pass America’s Conservation Enhancement Act (“U.S. House passes up to $92 million in Chesapeake Bay cleanup funding; advocates expect Trump to sign," Oct. 1). The passage of this bipartisan legislation is exciting news for the future of the Chesapeake Bay watershed and is cause for celebration.
Growing up in Federal Hill, my life has been full of waterfront memories — passing runners on scenic morning jogs and watching the sunset from a bench at the park. However, I also have memories of sweltering afternoons where the lack of shade-providing trees (and the occasional smell of dead fish due to algae blooms) made the four-block walk to my best friend’s house almost unbearable.