Maryland House pushes higher taxes, online gambling in $1.3B plan for education and transportation

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — A budget showdown at the Maryland General Assembly is brewing, with top House leaders outlining on Friday a $1.3 billion plan for new state revenues to pay future education and transportation costs that Senate leaders think is too hefty now and unsuitable for the state’s current economic climate.

The House’s revenue package includes tax, fee and toll increases, as well as the legalization of internet gambling, which would make casino games available for wagering online.

House Speaker Adrienne Jones, a Baltimore County Democrat, kicked off a news conference with top Democrats who control the chamber by saying, “We can no longer rely on quick fixes or short-term approaches.”

“They will only land us right back in the same place next year,” Jones said. “At this point, we know what the solution is, and it’s finally time that we just say it. The answer is revenues.”

The plan is targeting the rising costs of the state’s K-12 education funding plan known as the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. The blueprint, approved in 2020, phases in larger amounts of money to expand early childhood education, increase teachers’ salaries, and provide aid to struggling schools.

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