MARYLAND BRIEFING
MARYLAND BRIEFING
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STATE BUDGET
O'Malley Says He'll Protect Cities, Counties
Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) pledged yesterday to try to protect the interests of counties and municipalities as state leaders confront a budget shortfall next year of nearly $1.5 billion.
Aid to local governments accounts for more than 40 percent of Maryland's state budget, and some lawmakers may find that an attractive target when looking for spending cuts, O'Malley told local leaders in Salisbury.
"It does not make us a stronger state if we balance the state budget but leave county and municipal governments with large holes to fill," said O'Malley, who previously served as Baltimore's mayor for seven years. "I promise you I have not forgotten where I come from, and that's local government."
O'Malley urged local leaders to help build the case with lawmakers for a comprehensive budget fix that will likely involve "more revenue."
-- John Wagner
CALVERT COUNTY
Deputy's Blood-Alcohol Level Was Low
Blood-alcohol tests on a Calvert County sheriff's deputy show he apparently had consumed alcohol in the hours before crashing his patrol car while off duty June 9, but the alcohol level was so low he wasn't impaired at the time of wreck, Calvert Assistant Sheriff Thomas C. Hejl said yesterday.
The deputy's blood alcohol was "well under" 0.07, the level at which someone can be declared driving while impaired, Hejl said. He would not provide the exact blood-alcohol number.
The deputy, Johnny Coates, suffered paralysis from the waist down as a result of the single-vehicle wreck.
