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Updates:
The July Monthly Meeting was headlined by Delegate Robbyn Lewis of District 46
Here are the key takeaways.
- This legislative session education reform and funding were the priority.
- Hogan vetoed all education bills and the Democrats in the Statehouse and Senate look to override in 2021.
- The ACA (Obamacare) is under threat before the Republican-controlled Supreme Court. The Maryland General Assembly passed bills that codified ACA protections in state law.
- The Legislative Session this year was cut 20 days short due to Covid-19.
- Delegate Lewis is personally involved in health care protections and transit legislation. She has big plans for 20121
- The big focus for the 2021 legislative session is police reform. The ACLU has released 5 points including ending law enforcement officers’ bill of rights to fix policing in our state.
Banning No-Knock Warrants!
Over the last month, the Lower Shore Progressive Caucus has been joining community activists to pressure the Salisbury City Council to pass an ordinance that would Ban no-knock warrants and protect fourth amendment rights in Salisbury. Passing this ordinance is extremely important after the murder of Breonna Taylor and the appalling actions of federal agents black bagging protestors in cities around the country.
Our organization was able to collect 171 signatures for a petition to the City Council in support of the ordinance. We also successfully gathered a group of supporters to attend the hearing on this important ordinance. Despite the overwhelming support for the ordinance and having an opportunity to lead the state on police reform the City Council decided to kick the can down the road and not move forward on this important effort. Our organizations will take this setback in strive and continue to organize until the ordinance is passed.
Holding Congressman Andy Harris Accountable
There is no doubt that Andy Harris is the most radical congressman in Washington DC today. Whether It is membership in the far-right Congressional ”Freedom” Caucus or his friendships with well known white nationalists and antisemites like Congressman Harris consistently promotes values that go against our Eastern Shore way of life and basic human decency. Our organization through the hard work of our communications committee lead by Karen Smith, has been holding Andy Harris accountable by informing the public of his radical beliefs and promoting the common sense progressive policies of our endorsed candidate Mia Mason. We encourage our members to assist in this effort by following on social media pages and sharing our posts to spread the word. You can find our social media pages on the social media bar below! All you need to do is click the icon of the social media site you want!
The Ocean City Off-Shore Wind Project
There has been a major update on the Off-Shore Wind Project off the coast of Ocean City! The company building and operating the wind farm Ørsted announced that it would no longer build their interconnection facility on Fenwick Island because the construction site would destroy Undisturbed wetlands. Representatives from Ørstead have informed us that there is currently planning to announce a new location for the interconnection facility in the coming weeks.
As long term supporters of the project, the LSPC respects Ørsted’s commitment to their environmental principles and we look forward to continuing our with them on their goal of bringing good-paying green energy jobs to the Lower Eastern Shore.
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