Posted on 01/14/25
| News Source: FOX45
Annapolis, MD - Jan. 14, 2025 - Gov. Wes Moore will unveil his proposal to close the state’s nearly $3 billion budget deficit, but depending on who you talk to, the reason why Maryland is facing the massive financial hole is up for debate.
When lawmakers arrived back at the State House on the first day of session, there had already been talk about how the General Assembly and Gov. Moore would address the looming budget crisis. Gov. Moore said in an interview that he planned to introduce $2 billion in cuts, leaving the additional $1 billion to make up the difference a big unanswered question in Annapolis. Republicans, however, were quick to point to their counterparts on the other side of the aisle.
“This is a self-inflicted wound. We are very much aware of what was going on,” Senate Minority Leader Steve Hershey during an interview of FOX45 News In Depth. “The policies that we are talking about right now, that have cost us and put us in this position, many of them were vetoed by Gov. Hogan, overridden by the general assembly. Now we are paying the price for it.”
Sen. Hershey and other Republican lawmakers in Annapolis often point to programs that were vetoed by former Gov. Larry Hogan, a Republican, but then Democrats overrode Hogan’s veto. For example, the Time to Care Act of 2022 – which created an insurance fund that employees and employers contributed to, allowing up to 90% of an employee’s salary to be paid while the employee is out between 12 to 24 weeks due to the birth of a child or medical emergency – was vetoed by then Gov. Hogan. Democrats, while holding a supermajority in the House and Senate, overrode that veto.
“Our budget deficit is a self-inflicted wound, and our high cost of living is a self-inflicted wound,” Senate Minority Whip Justin Ready said during a news conference ahead of the first day of session.
Republicans also point to the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, also known as the Kirwan education spending plan. The multi-billion-dollar, decade-long, education plan was vetoed by former Gov. Hogan, but like other proposals, made it through after Democrats voted to override that veto. Cost concerns and educational improvements have surrounded the plan for years, and in 2023, several local leaders raised concerns about footing the bill.
The price tag for the current year is covered, but funding concerns are real for outyears. Gov. Moore called for some changes to the plan, including changes to teacher prep time. Republicans have pushed for a slower implementation timeline for the program, and a pause on expansion of Pre-kindergarten; the plans are things lawmakers will have to tackle during the legislative session.
By contrast, Senate President Bill Ferguson, D-Baltimore City, said the deficit is largely because of higher-than-expected costs of entitlement programs, like end-of-life care for seniors on Medicaid, and childcare subsidies.
“I like to diagnose things with facts and when we look at how we got where we are today, we know it’s entitlement spending,” Sen. Ferguson said. “It’s not reckless spending from years past that has caught up. And if it is, I would ask my good friends why they voted for the budget.”
According to the Department of Health, there are approximately 1.8 million Marylanders on Medicaid, or 1 in 4 Marylanders. Republicans have argued Maryland lowered the barrier to qualify for Medicaid, and given the budget pinch, should be revisited. Other GOP members questioned Sen. Ferguson’s explanation that people on Medicaid are showing up to the hospital sicker than they previously have – pointing to COVID-19 as an explanation – and therefore, need more care that is more expensive.
“We’re going to be told by Democratic leaders, well that’s because of Medicaid, people are just getting sicker,” House Minority Leader Jason Buckel said. “Do you honestly believe people get sicker in Towson than they do in Norfolk?”
“Actually, in Maryland we do have an aging population that is greater than any others; particularly an aging population that uses Medicaid for end-of-life care. That is different than several other states,” Sen. Ferguson said when asked to respond to what Republican members are saying. “We are not exclusively facing it, but it is acute for us”
Gov. Moore will present his budget proposal on Jan. 15; he’s expected to include $2 billion in cuts and at least some coming from the Rainy Day Fund.