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Maryland

Brooke Lierman sworn in as Md. comptroller

Former Baltimore City delegate supports LGBTQ rights

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Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman waves after her swearing in in Annapolis, Md., on Jan. 16, 2023. (Photo courtesy of Lierman's office)

Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman on Monday was sworn into office.

Lierman, who previously represented portions of Baltimore City in the Maryland House of Delegates, last November defeated then-Harford County Executive Barry Glassman in the race to succeed Peter Franchot. Lierman is Maryland’s first female state comptroller.

Lierman told the Washington Blade before her election that ensuring LGBTQ Marylanders and other underrepresented groups in the state have access to economic opportunities is one of her top priorities once she enters office.

“It means making sure that, if you’re an LGBTQ Black woman from Cheverly, from Prince George’s County who’s a great architect, we want you to be able to compete and win on contracts because we want to build a space where we have more competition, where more people are competing,” she said. “And we want to make sure we’re meeting and exceeding our minority business enterprise goals because it means that we’re building an economy that is growing the entire state and we’re using our contract dollars to build a larger state economy overall.”

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown took office on Jan. 3. Democratic Gov.-elect Wes Moore’s inauguration will take place on Wednesday.

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Maryland

Md. governor signs Freedom to Read Act

Law seeks to combat book bans

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Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (Public domain photo/Twitter)

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore on Thursday signed a bill that seeks to combat efforts to ban books from state libraries.

House Bill 785, also known as the Freedom to Read Act, would establish a state policy “that local school systems operate their school library media programs consistent with certain standards; requiring each local school system to develop a policy and procedures to review objections to materials in a school library media program; prohibiting a county board of education from dismissing, demoting, suspending, disciplining, reassigning, transferring, or otherwise retaliating against certain school library media program personnel for performing their job duties consistent with certain standards.”

Moore on Thursday also signed House Bill 1386, which GLSEN notes will “develop guidelines for an anti-bias training program for school employees.”

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Maryland

Health care for Marylanders with HIV is facing huge cuts this summer

Providers poised to lose three-quarters of funding

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(Photo courtesy of NIH)

BY MEREDITH COHN | By the end of June, health care providers in Maryland will lose nearly three-quarters of the funding they use to find and treat thousands of people with HIV.

Advocates and providers say they had been warned there would be less money by the Maryland Department of Health, but were stunned at the size of the drop — from about $17.9 million this fiscal year to $5.3 million the next. The deep cuts are less than three months away.

The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.

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Maryland

Joe Vogel campaign holds ‘Big Gay Canvass Kickoff’

Gay Md. lawmaker running for Congress

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Maryland state Del. Joe Vogel (D-Montgomery County) attends the "Big Gay Canvass Kickoff" event at his congressional campaign headquarters in Gaithersburg, Md., on April 19, 2024. (Washington Blade photo by Michael K. Lavers)

GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Maryland state Del. Joe Vogel (D-Montgomery County) on Friday held a “Big Gay Canvass Kickoff” event at his congressional campaign’s headquarters.

LGBTQ+ Victory Fund Vice President of Outreach and Engagement Marty Rouse and John Klenert, a member of the DC Vote and Victory Fund Campaign board of directors, are among those who participated alongside members of Equality PAC. Vogel spoke before Rouse, Klenert and others canvassed for votes in the area.

“Joe brings a fresh new perspective to politics,” said Gabri Kurtzer-Ellenbogen, deputy field director for Vogel’s campaign.

Vogel, 27, is among the Democrats running for Congressman David Trone’s seat.

Trone last May announced his bid to succeed retiring U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) in the U.S. Senate. 

The Democratic primary is on May 14. Vogel would be the first Latino, the first gay man and first Gen Zer elected to Congress from Maryland if he were to win in November.

“We need a new generation of leadership with new perspectives, new ideas, and the courage to actually deliver for our communities if we want things to get better in this country,” Vogel told the Washington Blade last month during an interview in D.C.

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