State Overview

This year, Maryland finishes 6th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia, with an overall score of 82.4 out of 100 points and a grade of B-minus. The nation as a whole posts a grade of C.
Diving into the findings for the three graded indices, Maryland earns a B in the Chance-for-Success category and ranks ninth. The average state earns a C-plus. In School Finance, Maryland receives a B and ranks seventh. For the K-12 Achievement Index, last updated in the 2016 report, it finishes fifth with a grade of C-plus. The average state earns grades of C and C-minus in School Finance and K-12 Achievement, respectively.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People have asked about Hogan's accomplishments, and it's been silence. Mostly they tout the $$$ roads to rural parts of the state that make developers happy and his Ocean City welfare program idea of legislating all school calendar start and end dates.

Did you miss this discussion back on the 2nd page of this thread?

Upon taking office, Governor Hogan and his administration took immediate action to rein in state spending and return the state to sound fiscal ground. He cut tolls at every single toll facility across the state for the first time in more than 50 years; reduced or eliminated 255 different fees; prevented 100 job-killing regulations from taking effect; repealed the notorious rain tax mandate; cut taxes for military retirees; and returned more than $200 million in refund checks to overtaxed citizens. In total, Governor Hogan has provided Marylanders nearly $700 million in tax, toll, and fee relief.

Governor Hogan’s commitment to restoring Maryland’s economy and creating jobs has yielded real results. His first year in office was the most successful in total job creation and private-sector job growth in the last 15 years. Since January 2015, and under the governor’s leadership, Maryland has created over 130,200 jobs.

Ensuring Maryland has a strong education system has also been a top priority for the Hogan administration. The governor has made a record investment of more than $12.4 billion in K-12 public education, and per-pupil funding has increased in every jurisdiction across the state. Most recently, Governor Hogan signed an executive order requiring schools to start after Labor Day and end by mid-June, returning common sense to the school calendar scheduling process.

Governor Hogan took swift action to address the state’s deteriorating roads and bridges. During his first year in office, he invested an unprecedented $2 billion in transportation funding, allowing the state to move forward on 84 top priority road projects in every jurisdiction and fixing every single structurally deficient bridge in Maryland.

Since taking office, the Hogan administration has been a strong supporter of protecting the environment and the health of Maryland’s most important natural asset: the Chesapeake Bay. Governor Hogan worked closely with the agricultural and environmental communities to develop enhanced Phosphorous Management Tool regulations – a solution that represents one of the most important steps forward in Maryland environmental policy in a generation. He has also provided the highest level of funding for the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund, and is the first governor in state history to not allow funding for the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay to be diverted into the General Fund.

To address the state’s heroin addiction epidemic, Governor Hogan created the Maryland Heroin and Opioid Emergency Task Force. In the 2016 legislative session, he acted on the recommendations of the Task Force, committing nearly $9 million in funding. He has also signed legislation to expand the state’s Good Samaritan Law and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.

Governor Hogan has been committed to public safety and redevelopment, closing the deplorable Baltimore City Detention Center; reopening the Maryland State Police Barrack in Annapolis, and launching Project C.O.R.E., a $700 million initiative to address blight in Baltimore City.

To reduce unnecessary and overly burdensome constraints on Maryland’s citizens and business community, Governor Hogan established the Regulatory Reform Commission to conduct a top-to-bottom review of every single regulation in the state, and he committed to implementing all 187 of the Commission’s recommended reforms following its final report published in December 2016. The Redistricting Reform Commission, also established in 2015, directly led to Hogan-sponsored legislation to end the partisan drawing of district lines. Returning free and fair elections to Maryland citizens remains a top goal of Governor Hogan and his administration.

Just this week, he released his latest budget which includes no tax increases, record money for K-12 education and holds tuition increases at Maryland public colleges to 2 percent. He WILL be re-elected.

Anonymous wrote:People have asked about Hogan's accomplishments, and it's been silence. Mostly they tout the $$$ roads to rural parts of the state that make developers happy and his Ocean City welfare program idea of legislating all school calendar start and end dates.

Upon taking office, Governor Hogan and his administration took immediate action to rein in state spending and return the state to sound fiscal ground. He cut tolls at every single toll facility across the state for the first time in more than 50 years; reduced or eliminated 255 different fees; prevented 100 job-killing regulations from taking effect; repealed the notorious rain tax mandate; cut taxes for military retirees; and returned more than $200 million in refund checks to overtaxed citizens. In total, Governor Hogan has provided Marylanders nearly $700 million in tax, toll, and fee relief.

Governor Hogan’s commitment to restoring Maryland’s economy and creating jobs has yielded real results. His first year in office was the most successful in total job creation and private-sector job growth in the last 15 years. Since January 2015, and under the governor’s leadership, Maryland has created over 130,200 jobs.

Ensuring Maryland has a strong education system has also been a top priority for the Hogan administration. The governor has made a record investment of more than $12.4 billion in K-12 public education, and per-pupil funding has increased in every jurisdiction across the state. Most recently, Governor Hogan signed an executive order requiring schools to start after Labor Day and end by mid-June, returning common sense to the school calendar scheduling process.

Governor Hogan took swift action to address the state’s deteriorating roads and bridges. During his first year in office, he invested an unprecedented $2 billion in transportation funding, allowing the state to move forward on 84 top priority road projects in every jurisdiction and fixing every single structurally deficient bridge in Maryland.

Since taking office, the Hogan administration has been a strong supporter of protecting the environment and the health of Maryland’s most important natural asset: the Chesapeake Bay. Governor Hogan worked closely with the agricultural and environmental communities to develop enhanced Phosphorous Management Tool regulations – a solution that represents one of the most important steps forward in Maryland environmental policy in a generation. He has also provided the highest level of funding for the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund, and is the first governor in state history to not allow funding for the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay to be diverted into the General Fund.

To address the state’s heroin addiction epidemic, Governor Hogan created the Maryland Heroin and Opioid Emergency Task Force. In the 2016 legislative session, he acted on the recommendations of the Task Force, committing nearly $9 million in funding. He has also signed legislation to expand the state’s Good Samaritan Law and Prescription Drug Monitoring Program.

Governor Hogan has been committed to public safety and redevelopment, closing the deplorable Baltimore City Detention Center; reopening the Maryland State Police Barrack in Annapolis, and launching Project C.O.R.E., a $700 million initiative to address blight in Baltimore City.

To reduce unnecessary and overly burdensome constraints on Maryland’s citizens and business community, Governor Hogan established the Regulatory Reform Commission to conduct a top-to-bottom review of every single regulation in the state, and he committed to implementing all 187 of the Commission’s recommended reforms following its final report published in December 2016. The Redistricting Reform Commission, also established in 2015, directly led to Hogan-sponsored legislation to end the partisan drawing of district lines. Returning free and fair elections to Maryland citizens remains a top goal of Governor Hogan and his administration.