News and Events: quick read

Logo for the League of Women Voters
 Logo for LWV SMC newsletter League of Women Voters
of St. Mary's County Maryland
P. O. Box 130
Leonardtown MD 20650
info@smc.lwvmd.org
  smc.lwvmd.org

LWV St. Marys County MD

News and Events collected into one page for easy reading

Calendar of Events

March 2010
Dates Times Events Posted By:
Mon 15 Mar 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm PRISCM, A Program about Transportation and Jobs in Central and Southern Maryland LWV Pr. Georges County MD
Tue 16 Mar 10:00 am - 12:00 pm Voter Service Workshop LWV Maryland Flyer
Wed 17 Mar 11:30 am - 1:00 pm Public Forum: Shining the Light on Government LWV Anne Arundel County MD Flyer
Thu 18 Mar 11:30 am - 1:00 pm March General Meeting LWV St. Marys County MD Flyer

April 2010
Dates Times Events Posted By:
Thu 1 Apr (All day) Census Day LWV Maryland
Mon 5 Apr 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm LWV-SMC Board Meeting LWV St. Marys County MD
Tue 6 Apr 10:00 am - 3:30 pm LWVMD Lobby Day on Capitol Hill LWV Maryland Flyer
Sun 18 Apr 12:30 pm - 4:30 pm Earth Day LWV St. Marys County MD
Fri 23 Apr 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm To the Last Drop: Our Looming Fresh Water Crisis LWV St. Marys County MD
Sat 24 Apr 10:00 am - 3:00 pm 90th Birthday Celebration Tour LWV Maryland Flyer

May 2010
Dates Times Events Posted By:
Sat 22 May 9:30 am - 2:30 pm LWVMD State Council LWV Maryland Flyer
Mon 31 May (All day) Federal Holiday: Memorial Day

President's Letter
Posted by Patricia (Pat) Dunlap for LWV St. Marys County MD
17 Nov 2009

Congratulations, the LWV’s 90th anniversary is around the corner, so here’s a reminder of who we are: 

The League of Women Voters was founded by Carrie Chapman Catt in 1920…just six months before the 19th amendment [gave] women the right to vote after a 72-year struggle. The League began as a "mighty political experiment" designed to help 20 million women carry out their new responsibilities…. It encouraged them to use their new power to participate in shaping public policy. From the beginning, the League was an activist, grassroots organization whose leaders believed that citizens should play a critical role in advocacy…. League founders believed that maintaining a nonpartisan stance would protect the fledgling organization from becoming mired in the party politics of the day. However, League members were encouraged to be political themselves, by educating citizens about, and lobbying for, government and social reform legislation.  Excerpted from “Our History,” www.lwv.org.

All of that makes this a special year to attend the National Convention, and it won’t be all that far away. 

 

What: The LWVUS 49th National Convention

Where: the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Center Ave., Atlanta, GA

            When: June 11-15, 2010

                        Friday, June 11              Pre-Convention Training            2-5 p.m.

                        Saturday, June 12          Briefings                                   10 a.m. – noon

                                                            Call to Order (Convention starts) 1 p.m.

                        Sunday, June 13            Convention continues                 all day

                        Monday, June 14                 “                 “                      all day

                        Tuesday, June 15           Adjourn                                    noon

 

This should be exciting, especially for members like me who have never been to a LWV convention.  I plan to attend and probably will drive.  I’d love to have company and a nice representation from St. Mary’s County.  Put this on your calendars and think consider it seriously.

 

We have some local excitement, too.  Our October 7th forum on The State of Healthcare in St. Mary’s County went off without a hitch, was televised twice on channel 95, was genuinely informative, and made the front page of the Enterprise.  Furthermore, our January 6th forum is coming together nicely.  It is the Second Annual Energy and Environment Forum whose panelists represent the Maryland House of Delegates (the Honorable Sally Jameson), NAS Patuxent River (Environmental Division Director Lance McDaniel), the SMC Board of County Commissioners (President Jack Russell), and SMECO (Environmental Programs and Energy Conservation Manager Jeff Shaw).  And we’ve begun planning a spring expo to be held April 23 in collaboration with LWV Calvert County and the Calvert Marine Museum.  If you’d like to help with any of these activities, we’d certainly love to have you.  Just contact any member of the board.  Finally, we’re planning some fun for the holiday season.

 

On Saturday, December 5, we’ll hold our first general meeting of the year.  I googled our founder, Leslie Vandivere, and invited her, so cross your fingers.  We will be recognizing members of our chapter who’ve been with the League (anywhere at all) the longest as well as our newest members.  Finally, we hope to increase our membership, so I’m asking each of us to bring a friend.  We have several fun activities on the menu, and business will be kept to a minimum, so come and enjoy.  Details are in this newsletter.

Patricia Dunlap




News and Events


PRISCM, A Program about Transportation and Jobs in Central and Southern Maryland
Posted by Carole Conors for LWV Pr. Georges County MD
Mon 15 Mar 2010 - 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Held at Gethsemane United Methodist Church, 910 Addison Road S., Capitol Heights.    Public informational program about transportation and jobs, Central and Southern Maryland.   Not a League of Women Voters event.  

Info:   renee.brereton1@gmail.com, 301-577-5338.

http://www.gamaliel.org/PRISCM/events.htm



Public Forum: Shining the Light on Government
Posted by LWV Anne Arundel for LWV Anne Arundel County MD
Wed 17 Mar 2010 - 11:30 am - 1:00 pm

Forum: Shining the Light on Government -- Is the Door to Information Open Wide Enough?

Sponsored by LWV of Anne Arundel and by Common Cause

Panel Members:

  • Nancy Soreng, LWVMD President
  • Ryan O'Donnell of Common Cause
  • Josh Cohen, Mayor of Annapolis
  • Tom Marquardt, Capital Editor-in-Chief
  • William R. Vargua, Ass't Attorney General of MD

Free!  Sandwich Buffet

Where: St. Anne's Parish Hall, 199 Duke of Gloucester Street in Annapolis

Contact: info@aa.lwvmd.org



March General Meeting
Posted by Michelle Vaughn for LWV St. Marys County MD
Thu 18 Mar 2010 - 11:30 am - 1:00 pm

Location:  Lexington Restaurant and Lounge (Formally the Roost)

21736 Great Mills Road
Lexington Park, MD 20653-3801
(240) 237-8096
 

 

Please read the Administration of Justice Study Guide attached prior to the meeting. 



LWV-SMC Board Meeting
Posted by Michelle Vaughn for LWV St. Marys County MD
Mon 5 Apr 2010 - 1:30 pm - 3:00 pm

Location:  Leonardtown Public Library



Earth Day
Posted by Michelle Vaughn for LWV St. Marys County MD
Sun 18 Apr 2010 - 12:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Location:  Leonardtown Square



To the Last Drop: Our Looming Fresh Water Crisis
Posted by Michelle Vaughn for LWV St. Marys County MD
Fri 23 Apr 2010 - 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Sponsored by LWV of Calvert County, LWV of St. Mary's County, and the Calvert Marine Museum

To the Last Drop: Our Looming Fresh Water Crisis

Discussion of Fresh-Water Aquifer Issues in Southern Maryland

Friday, April 23, 2010, 1-5 P.M. at the Calvert Marine Museum, Solomons

 

Keynote Speaker:  Dr. Robert Summers, Director of MD Dept. of the Environment (MDE) Water Management Administration

PANELISTS:

  • Steve King - former Director of St. Mary’s County Metropolitan Commission–Potable Water Distribution & Waste Water Treatment (MetCom)
  • Dave Bolton – MD Geological Survey, Hydrogeology and Aquifer Division
  • Gregory Bowen – Director, Calvert County Dept. of Planning and Zoning

EXHIBITS:

  • St. Mary’s County Public Schools
  • St. Marys County Health Department
  • Calvert County Extension Office – Agriculture and Natural Resources Services
  • Science Fair Projects from St. Mary's County Students 


Voter Service Workshop
Posted by Nancy Soreng for LWV Maryland
Tue 16 Mar 2010 - 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

The State League will have a Voter Service Workshop from 10 to noon, Tuesday, March 16, at the Wilde Lake Interfaith Center in Columbia to begin the state coordination of Voters' Guides. Each League should have at least one or two people in attendance.


LWVMD's Policies, Procedures and Guidelines, specifies some of the things to be covered at this workshop, which include

  • a calendar of election deadlines and dates;
  • a list of LL responsibilities - including lead coverage of shared Congressional and legislative districts,
  • a timeline for completion of tasks for the Voters’ Guide,
  • an overview of the election process,
  • suggested and mandatory explanatory VG materials,
  • the format for candidates' biography and responses,
  • and procedures for determining questions for the statewide and federal offices.

Please contact lwvmd@verizon.net with the names and contact information of the people from your League who will be attending the workshop.


Barbara Sanders
LWVMD Voter Service Chair



Census Day
Posted by Webmaster LWVMD for LWV Maryland
Thu 1 Apr 2010 (All day)
Link: Maryland 2010 Census

MD CensusFrom the MD Census website

"There is an important civic and constitutionally mandated event that will shape our future over the course of the next decade and we need your help. The 2010 Census is coming and we must ensure that every Marylander in every neighborhood, community, village, town, city and county in our State is counted on Census Day: April 1, 2010.

"By answering the Census, services and programs such as job training, education, health care and improvements to our infrastructure will be there for Maryland families and communities for years to come. An accurate Census is extremely important. An undercount of as little as 1.7% or 100,000 of our state’s 5.8 million residents translates to a loss of $1 billion dollars in federal revenue over the next ten years.

"To ensure an accurate count, we are working closely with the U.S. Census Bureau, your local government, community organizations and people like you. The success of the Census: it’s in our hands, Maryland!"



LWVMD Lobby Day on Capitol Hill
Posted by Nancy Soreng for LWV Maryland
Tue 6 Apr 2010 - 10:00 am - 3:30 pm

Carole Conors, director of the LWVUS Lobby Corps, will take League members to the offices of our US Senators and Representatives on Capitol Hill.   Briefing materials will be provided  to League members for lobbying on a topic selected by LWVUS.  All Maryland League members are encouraged to participate.   (Participating in the lobbying is optional.)   CaroleConors@verizon.net



90th Birthday Celebration Tour
Posted by Nancy Soreng for LWV Maryland
Sat 24 Apr 2010 - 10:00 am - 3:00 pm

Celebrate the 90th Birthday of the League of Women Voters with a tour of US Capitol and the new Visitor Center http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/index.html followed by lunch with fellow League members. Then visit the Sewell-Belmont House http://www.sewallbelmont.org/ the headquarters of the historic National Woman's Party and  the Washington home of its founder and Equal Rights Amendment author Alice Paul.



SB 243 Housing-Discrimination Based on Source of Income Prohibitions
Posted by Marjiesk for LWV Maryland on 28 Feb 2010.

The League has been involved in supporting legislation that prohibits landlords and realtors from discriminating against prospective renters/ homebuyers based on their source of income for at least the last 10 years. 

The bill was heard by the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee (JPR) on Feb. 24th, and it is important that members of the committee hear from constituents that they support this bill. 
 
This bill adds “source of income” to the list of areas such as race and religion that someone selling or renting a home may not use as a selection criteria for prospective buyers/renters. Passage of this bill would open doors for many low and moderate income renters and home buyers that currently are denied the housing opportunity based solely on their source of income.  This affects women who rely on alimony and child support as part of their income, individuals with disabilities who rely on SSDI as their source of income, and those who receive rental assistance from a government program. Families, who depend on alimony, disability income or rental subsidies, are often told that those funds cannot be counted in calculating whether a family meets the required income to qualify to rent or purchase a home. 
 
The LWV believes that this is discrimination and that the source of one’s income should not be the determining factor in considering them as renters or homebuyers.  Many in the housing industry oppose this bill; it is important that our legislators hear from League members in their district that we believe source of income should not be a selection criteria.
 
If your Senator is a member of JPR, please contact her/him BY PHONE OR ON Legislative Day to state your support of HB243.
 
JPR members: 
Brian E. Frosh, Chair        Lisa A. Gladden, Vice Chair
 members:


Local Management Boards that Distribute Funds to Children are in Jeopardy
Posted by Marjiesk for LWV Maryland on 3 Mar 2010.

It has come to our attention that funding for Local Management Boards is in jeopardy in this year’s budget.  The 24 Local Management Boards distribute funds to local providers for services for children including prevention and early intervention services.  They have been proven to be a successful means to provide coordination and collaboration in service provision and as a result have been a cost effective means to distribute funding.  If you are a constituent of one or more members the committees listed below, please contact them, as an individual, and let them know that are a supporter of Local Management Boards and do not want to see funding for them reduced.

 
Pat Plunkett, RSC reporter for Children’s Services
Nancy Soreng,  LWVMD President
Marjie Slater-Kaplan, LWVMD Action Chair 
 
Senate Appropriations Committee
Norman H. Conway, Chair (410) 841-3407, (301) 858-3407
James E. Proctor, Jr., Vice-Chair (410) 841-3083, (301) 858-3083
Susan L. M. Aumann        Gail H. Bates                                    Wendell R. Beitzel            John L. Bohanan, Jr.
Talmadge Branch             William A. Bronrott                           Galen R. Clagett               Steven J. DeBoy, Sr.
Adelaide C. Eckardt         Tawanna P. Gaines                         Melony G. Griffith              Ana Sol Gutierrez
Guy J. Guzzone                 Keith E. Haynes                                Henry B. Heller                  Mary-Dulany James
Adrienne A. Jones            Murray D. Levy                                  Heather R. Mizeur             Barbara A. Robinson
Steven R. Schuh               Theodore J. Sophocleus                  Nancy R. Stocksdale        John F. Wood, Jr.
 
 
House of Delegates Budget and Taxation Committee
Ulysses Currie, Chair (410) 841-3127, (301) 858-3127
Edward J. Kasemeyer, Vice-Chair (410) 841-3653, (301) 858-3653
David R. Brinkley            James E. DeGrange, Sr.       George C. Edwards                      Verna L. Jones
Nancy J. King                Rona E. Kramer                    Richard S. Madaleno, Jr.               Nathaniel J. McFadden
Donald F. Munson          Douglas J. J. Peters             James N. Robey                           J. Lowell Stoltzfus
Robert A. (Bobby) Zirkin


Call Your Senator Now on the BOAST Bill: A Private School Voucher Bill in Disguise
Posted by Marjiesk for LWV Maryland on 9 Mar 2010.

This BOAST bill is a private school voucher bill in disguise has passed out of the Senate Budget &Tax Committee with a  FAVORABLE recommendation, and is headed to the Senate floor.  Tell your Senator to VOTE NO on SB 385.

 
Providing tax credits to organizations that provide the scholarships would mean in essence that public funds will be used to fund private schools, a tenet that we do not accept. Not only will the result be less state money to support the public schools where the scholarship students live; it may also mean that those schools that need resources the most will have fewer funds. Non public schools are likely to become more selective with a greater pool of applicants due to these scholarships, thus skimming off the highest achieving low income students from the public schools where their leadership and achievement are most needed.
 
Sponsors SB 385: Senators DeGrange, Brinkley, Dyson, Klausmeier, McFadden, Peters, Reilly, and Stoltzfus
 
Although this bill has been unsuccessful in previous years, it has more sponsors in the House than ever before. If you visit a House sponsor, ask them why, in this challenging fiscal climate, they want to divert valuable state revenue to private schools.
 
Sponsors HB 946: Delegates Proctor, Walker, Vallario, Anderson, Aumann, Bartlett, Bates, Beidle, Beitzel, Benson, Bohanan, Boteler, Burns, Conaway, Conway, Davis, DeBoy, Donoghue, Doory, Dumais, Eckardt, Elliott, Elmore, Frank, Frush, Gaines, George, Glenn, Haddaway, Hammen, Haynes, Heller, Holmes, Hubbard, Ivey, James, Jameson, Jennings, Kach, Kelly, King, Kipke, Krebs, Krysiak, Kullen, Levi, Levy, Malone, Mathias, McConkey, McHale, Miller, Minnick, Myers, O'Donnell, Oaks, Ramirez, Robinson, Rosenberg, Ross, Schuh, Shank, Shewell, Sophocleus, Sossi, Stocksdale, Stukes, Stull, Tarrant, Taylor, V. Turner, Valderrama, Vaughn, Weir, and Wood
 

 

SB 385/HB 946 Building Opportunities for All Students and Teachers (BOAST) in Maryland; a Tax Credit that provides a 75% tax credit of up to $200,000 per business to any business that donates to private school tuition scholarships. For many years the League has opposed using public funding for VOUCHERS to enable parents to send their children to private elementary and secondary schools. This bill would entitle certain students to tuition scholarships (otherwise known as vouchers) to attend a non-public elementary or secondary school in Maryland.


Maryland Census Partnership Links
Posted by B Sanders for LWV Maryland on 12 Oct 2009.

The Maryland 2010 Census website provides access to Outreach Committees at state and local levels at:

www.census.state.md.us/S3_Partners.shtml.

Check it out and join in the local efforts to make sure all Marylanders are counted!



Order form for "Report from State Circle"
Posted by LWVMD Web for LWV Maryland on 2 Nov 2009.

"Report from State Circle" is published about every two weeks while the Maryland General Assembly is in session from January to April. It covers a broad spectrum of social, economic, environmental and governmental proposals before the Maryland General Assembly that the League will be monitoring, including the Governor’s Budget and important legislative events.

Email subscriptions are free; hardcopy subscriptions cost $15 for LWV members and $25 for non-members. Print and fill the attached form out ONLY if you want to get the Hardcopy version.  If you want the free EMAIL subscription, please use the subscription area on the right-hand side of the screen or go to the Subscription Page. You may also sign up for free Action Alerts.

Publication starts 27 January 2010, and the Wrap-Up issue will be on Monday, 19 April 2010. Sixteen different reporters will cover these issues from the League perspective, including our long-considered positions and our 2010 Legislative Priorities:

  • Administration of Justice
  • Affordable Housing
  • Budget & Revenue
  • Campaign Finance
  • Children & Families
  • Death Penalty
  • Domestic Violence
  • Education
  • Elections
  • Gun Control
  • Health
  • Marriage Equality
  • Reproductive Choice
  • Transportation/Air Quality

The publication can be mailed first class but is available on our website for everyone Free of Charge. Subscribe at http://lwvmd.org/n/newsletter/subscriptions and we’ll send you a notice as soon as the newest edition is available.



Legislative Priorities 2010
Posted by LWV Maryland for LWV Maryland on 23 Nov 2009.

Openness in Government

We support full public disclosure of House and Senate committee votes published on the Maryland General Assembly website: mlis.state.md.us including dates and legislator votes.
We support the elimination of fees for Up-To-The-Minute and the availability of this information to all Marylanders.
We support the podcasting or broadcasting of the Board of Public Works meetings and work sessions.
 
Adequate State Revenue
We support a revenue structure for Maryland which is equitable, reliable, adequate and progressive over all. We must protect the most vulnerable residents through a safety net of basic social services.
 
Health Care
Universal Access To Quality Care
We support legislaion that will make a basic level of quality health care accessible to all residents that is available at an affordable cost.
We support reproducive choice.
 
Environment
 
Land Use
We support managed land use and growth management through the principles of smart growth, which promote public transportation, protect the natural environment and provide for better water and air quality.
 
Climate Change
We support managed land use and growth management which promotes resource conservaion, public transportaion, the protecion of the natural environment, sustainable energy policies and protection of water and air quality.
We support initiatives such as sustainable energy policies to reduce emissions of heat-trapping gases . These actions will reduce the threat of global warming, combat air pollution, increase energy security and create new jobs.
 
Transportation
We support public education to promote goals that provide alternative travel modes, encourage technological improvements to abate emissions from mobile sources, reduce energy consumption and protect natural resources.
League of
Action taken by the League of Women Voters to affect legislation is based on positions reached by the membership through research, study, discussion and consensus.
 
LWVMD Will also Support:
  • Voter Education
  • Civil Liberties
  • Campaign Finance Reform, including Public funding
  • Work Force and Affordable Housing
  • Fair Campaigns and Elections
  • Redistricting


"State Circle" and General Assembly Proceedings on MD Public TV
Posted by LWVMD Web for LWV Maryland on 5 Jan 2010.

On the weekly show "State Circle" on Maryland Public TV, host Jeff Salkin and reporters Lou Davis, Mindy Mintz, and Charles Robinson provide analysis of major issues and pending bills and legislative news during the General Assembly session.  The show often features interviews with experts and elected representatives.

Visit http://www.mpt.org/statecircle to learn more.

 

Maryland Public Television also shows proceedings of the General Assembly at midnights Tuesday through Friday while the General Assembly is in session.   Tune in or record it to see your elected legislators in action. You might even see a League Member giving testimony.



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