2019 Legislative Session

Letters Sent by the Caucus

• The transportation sector is the largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions in Maryland and the United States. Lawmakers wrote to Governor Hogan and called for the creation of a regional climate action policy for the transportation sector that pushes the state to meet and exceed the goals set in state law in 2016.

• Lawmakers wrote to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority to request that they live video-stream their public meetings. Of the boards that oversee the five largest rapid transit systems by ridership in the United States, WMATA is the only one that does not video stream its meeting.

• In a letter to the Board of Public Works, lawmakers representing districts along I-495 and I-270 pushed back against the proposed public-private partnership on these highways, citing the rushed process and the incomplete Environmental Impact Statement.

• Prior to a meeting between Governor Hogan and Maryland’s federal elected team, many Transit Caucus members sent a letter to our federal leaders pushing back against Governor Hogan’s request to take all ownership responsibilities for the Baltimore-Washington Parkway. Without this letter, at least one Senator commented, our federal officials would have been more inclined to accede to the Governor’s request. This well-timed letter provided helpful counterpoints.