Hoyer Presses for Local Share of Stimulus

U.S. House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer returned to his old stomping grounds Friday to lobby for the $819 billion stimulus package aimed at reviving the nation's economy.

At a news conference at the site of what will be the new Calvert Middle School, Hoyer (D-Md.) talked about the benefits that Southern Maryland will receive if the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is passed.

The bill cleared the House on Wednesday, 244-188, without a single Republican supporter. The Senate is to begin debating it tomorrow.

Addressing Calvert Middle students Friday, Hoyer said, "Boys and girls, our country is facing tough times, and we just put you into a lot of debt."

Hoyer represents the 5th Congressional District, which comprises Calvert, Charles and St. Mary's counties and parts of Prince George's and Anne Arundel counties.

He said that the stimulus package, despite being the largest monetary amount he has ever voted on, would stimulate the economy and promote job growth, ensuring that the students will have a solid future.

Republicans say the bill would spend hundreds of billions of dollars on initiatives that would do little to help the economy.

With the state facing a $2 billion deficit, Hoyer recently met with Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) to outline what kind of funding from the stimulus package might be going to Maryland. On Friday, Hoyer met with O'Malley and the mayors of Chesapeake Beach and North Beach and other municipalities in his district.

Nearly $294 million is budgeted in the House version of the bill to modernize and repair Maryland's schools. More than $24.2 million of that would go to Southern Maryland over the next two years, based on a draft of the document.

Funding school construction is an "investment not only in today . . . but also an investment in all of you, our future," Hoyer told the students.

Wilson H. Parran (D-Huntingtown), president of the Calvert Board of County Commissioners, said that school construction requires a partnership with the state and federal governments. He said that the federal money could offset some of the state's budget cuts, which are expected to significantly affect local governments.

George R. Leah, Calvert's director of school construction, said that "there appears to be $1.227 million in federal funds through this act" for county school construction this year.