Residents Fight Hatem Bridge Tolls at Public Hearing

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9:00 p.m.: Hundreds of residents from Harford and Cecil counties joined many of their elected officials at a public hearing Monday to express their opposition to the state's plan to increase tolls at the Hatem Bridge.

While the meeting continues into the night, here's a sampling of what people had to tell the state officials about the multi-tiered increase proposed by Gov. Martin O'Malley's administration.

8:58 p.m.: Betty LeBrun, of Baltimore County, asks Marylanders to look at California, because, she said, "that is where we are headed."

LeBrun said Maryland has the fourth-highest taxes in the nation, and is the fifth-worst state for business growth.

"Cut spending first," LeBrun said. "States are cutting spending, while our bunch in Annapolis raised spending 11 percent over '09."

8:55 p.m.: Georgeann Wheeler, of Havre de Grace, said those who live or work in the community should get an E-ZPass cost-free.

8:50 p.m.: John Griffin, of Aberdeen, said the MdTA "needs to do more with less."

He advocates the MdTA do away with its police force.

Griffin suggests the ICC be a two-way toll at $10 each way.

"What you propose is ridiculous, and it should be illegal," he said.

8:44 p.m.: Suzanne Chadwick, of Havre de Grace, said the cost of living has grown immensely in Maryland.

Chadwick questions why other raised highways in the state don't pay tolls.

She suggests tolls be placed around Annapolis, and predicts if that were to happen, tolls would disappear altogether.

"If additional revenue is needed, please spread it around to the rest of the state," she said.

8:44 p.m.: Al Peteraf, of Havre de Grace, is a realtor who works between the two counties.

"We’ve been so busy enjoying life, America, we’ve not done our job. ... We have not demanded integrity and common sense in our government," he said.

Peteraf said the AVI decal should remain, or the tolls should be moved to the Maryland-Delaware state lines.

He said: "Tolls are a national problem. They are an antiquated tax system."

Peteraf challenges the MdTA to answer to the citizens and "do the right thing."

8:31 p.m.: Norman Harrington, of Aberdeen, said the state should do away with tolls and instead levy the increases on a gas tax, which would be spread about the state more evenly.

“[Tolls are] bad for the state. Its bad for commerce," he said. "Tolls are bad for a number of reasons. … All that money is parasitic cost.”

8:27 p.m.: Judy Fortier, of Aberdeen, is required to travel to Cecil County regularly for medical care.

On removing the AVI decal plan, she said: "The equipment is already there. Why throw it away to go out and buy E-ZPass equipment? Your plan requires me to buy something I don't want to buy."

8:23 p.m.: Harford Council Councilman Chad Shrodes addresses the board.

"I need the board to understand, Route 40 is a commuter route. It's not an interstate," Shrodes said. "We should not be subsidizing the D.C. area's ICC."

Shrodes represents northern Harford County, where truckers are using back roads to bypass weigh stations and tolls. He said aside from cost, the proposed changes will create traffic hazards.

8:17 p.m.: John Narvell of Havre de Grace said Havre de Grace depends on tourism and volunteerism.

Much of those two aspects are dependent upon Cecil County, he said.

He said he is willing to do away with his AVI decal if the same rates can be applied to the E-ZPass.

8:16 p.m.: Michael Danish, of Aberdeen, would like the MdTA to consider removing the MdTA police off the Hatem Bridge.

8:12 p.m.: Suzette Jackson of the Freedom Hills Therapeutic Riding Program in Port Deposit, declares that her business will struggle tremendously with the proposed hikes.

She lists a number of businesses in Cecil County, but points out that Cecil County residents must choose between paying a toll to shop in Harford, or go out of state and shop in Delaware.

8:08 p.m.: Shirley Carroll, of Havre de Grace, said she was born in Virginia and raised in Maryland, and chooses to stay here.

She reads lyrics beginning with, "A bridge over troubled waters."

Carroll asks that the board be less like trolls, and instead, a solution.

8:02 p.m.: William Burton, of Havre de Grace, said its time to look for alternatives if the rate changes are approved.

Burton suggests the AVI stickers remain in place for Harford and Cecil residents only, at a rate of $20 a year.

Burton proposed that all big trucks be banned from the Hatem Bridge and the Conowingo Dam, therefore forcing them to travel I-95, and hit the toll facility there.

8:00 p.m.: Karen Green tells Patch there are 1,013 seats in the gymnasium.

7:53 p.m.: Bob Carson reiterates the initial promise that locals would pay only a "nominal toll" to cross the Hatem Bridge.

Carson said he bought his decal "this last Friday," and learned tonight his decal will no longer be valid in October.

Carson said the construction on the Hatem Bridge has been frustrating. He's also disappointed .

7:50 p.m.: Gaby Frank, a local business owner, presents the board with a t-shirt against the toll hikes.

Her husband, Bob Frank asks the board to tell Gov. O'Malley to "enjoy his final term in office. If he lets this happen, I don't think this man would be elected dog-catcher in any community in the state."

7:45 p.m.: Karen Green addresses the board.

"I am bi-countied. That means I live between both counties," she said. "I have kidney disease. I must go to dialysis three times a week. If I don't, I will die. So, I cross the bridge. If I'm incapable of crossing that bridge, the people in this room take me."

Green said dialysis is $72,000 a year, and she pointed out many in the audience who have helped her through her treatments.

"This toll kills me. Literally," Green said. "When you are looking at this toll, see my face."

The crowd gives a standing ovation as Green leaves the gymnasium, which she manages.

7:44 p.m.: Lucille Correri, of Havre de Grace, asked that members of the board "stop nodding off and stay awake."

Correri asked that the AVI stickers stay in place, and that members of the state government should do away with the free items they utilize.

7:43 p.m.: Fred Archer, president of the Harford County Board of Realtors, said Harford and Cecil counties are united in their stance against toll increases.

"Do away with Pennsylvania and Delaware," Archer said. "If we go on their tolls, we pay the regular fee."

7:38 p.m.: Public comment begins with Dorothy Butler.

Butler said she feels safe using the AVI decal. She points out that the AVI decal isn't obsolete, because similar bar codes are scanned at the grocery store.

Butler said she will begin using the Conowingo Dam. If others follow, she feels it will become dangerous to the stability of the dam.

7:35 p.m.: Thomas asks if there are any further comments from elected officials. Public comment will begin with Dorothy Butler.

7:34 p.m.: Jacobs speaks on behalf of Aberdeen Mayor Mike Bennett, who is the President of the Maryland Municipal League.

Bennett and the City of Aberdeen crafted a resolution in agreement with the resolution by Havre de Grace.

7:27 p.m.: Havre de Grace Planning Director Neal Mills is in attendance to represent the City of Havre de Grace.

Mills reads an abbreviated version of .

The crowd applauds as Mills reads that the Mayor and City Council "reject" the proposals of the MdTA.

Mills then reads a letter written to Swaim-Staley and the members of the MdTA Board.

7:24 p.m.: Jim Ports is in attendance in lieu of Harford County Exec. David Craig, who is attending the Maryland Municipal League meeting in Ocean City—along with a number of local officials, including all members of the Havre de Grace City Council and Mayor Wayne Dougherty.

Ports said the rural areas of Harford County will be negatively impacted, as will local commerce. Ports said construction delivery trucks will be hit hard by the proposed increases.

7:18 p.m.: Harford County Councilwoman Mary Ann Lisanti thanked the board for holding a meeting in Havre de Grace. Lisanti is a native of Havre de Grace, but said she considers Harford and Cecil counties her community.

"Clearly, these two bridges that cross the Susquehanna link our communities on a daily basis," she said. "This birdge was named for Thomas J. Hatem. ... He was a native of Havre de Grace. He spent his entire career linking these communities. Please don't make his legacy one of divide."

Lisanti draws applause from the crowd by drawing upon figures and facts about : "20,500 patients from Cecil County alone were treated here on an outpatient basis. ... Fifty-one percent of their market share comes from the six neighboring zip codes in Cecil County."

The crowd applauds after Lisanti said the drawbacks of the E-ZPass program is the registration requirement of "the internet, bank account or a credit card. Many of us in this community don't have any of these."

Lisanti questions the hours of the administrative building at the toll facility along Route 40 in Cecil County.

7:17 p.m.: Harford County Council President Billy Boniface said the agricultural community in the county has taken a significant hit due to the current economy.

"A great deal of commerce takes place between Harford, Cecil, and the entire Eastern Shore," Boniface said.

Boniface said traffic will do significant damage to the community of Darlington and the structure carrying Route 1 over the Susquehanna—the Conowingo Dam.

"An increase in accidents all along the route will suely become a regular occurance," Boniface said, before urging the board to take the comments of citizens to heart.

"I hope it is not a foregone conclusion that the decision has already been made," he said.

7:11 p.m.: The Cecil County Board of Commissioners begin their address behind President Jim Mullin.

Mullin reads a letter from the Board of Commissioners to the board, and into the record.

7:10 p.m.: Del. Kathy Szeliga said her constituents consist of commuters who have filled her email inbox with objections to the rate increases.

Szeliga said the MdTA has $1.6 billion in cash collected in tolls. She said, according to an April report, that $350 million will be spent by 2013.

Szeliga said the revenues have been underestimated, while expense have been overestimated.

"Commuters are paying more, and ou can call it a fee, a toll or a tax, but I think we know," Szeliga said. "Didn't we learn in the last election? If it comes out of my pocket, it's a tax."

Szeliga agreed with Jacobs on the notion that the Hatem and Tydings bridges are facilities of necessity: "Unless you want to swim, you've got to take that bridge."

Szeliga said Maryland may be able to change its slogan from "The Free State" to "The Fee State."

7:05 p.m.: Del. Mike Smigiel said—two speeches later—he still doesn't have the documentation he requested more than a month ago. Smigiel wanted the documents to show how the MdTA came up with its figures, and what alternatives were considered.

Smiegiel said the only requirement to satisfy a "AAA Bond rating" is: "The willingness to tax anybody, any amount, anytime."

On alternatives, Smigiel drew cheers when he said: "Did you look at doing away with the MdTA Police?"

Smigiel asked if anyone in the audience is in favor of the toll increases. One person in the front row raised their hand.

Smigiel called the proposed hikes "tyranny."

6:59 p.m.: Del. Susan McComas, who represents Bel Air, joked that she may be in favor of the toll increases to keep her kayaking husband from traveling to Cecil County so often.

But McComas gets serious and said she is opposed to the hikes—particularly due to the timing.

"There is a time and a season to be raising rates on things. The governor has said many times: this is the worst economic times since the Great Depression," she said.

McComas said now is the time to be prudent and "now isn't the time to put more burden on Maryland families."

McComas said if the tolls were going to be raised, it should have been done "in bits and pieces."

McComas praised Del. Rudolph for his proposed alternatives, before saying, "keep things the same—status quo."

6:54 p.m.: Del. Glen Glass opens his statement by delivering a petition with 1,100 signatures to the MdTA board.

"They should get rid of the AVI sticker. There should not be a cost for anybody who lives in Cecil or Harford counties," Glass said.

Glass reiterates what he did in Perryville: there is no toll between the "Twin Cities" of Minnesota.

"This is going to hurt businesses," Glass said. "This is terrible for businesses."

Glass said businesses will be forced to raise their rates to make up for lost wages and businesses due to toll hikes.

"I say no to any toll increases," Glass said. "Stop spending our money like that."

6:46 p.m.: Del. Wayne Norman thanks the MdTA Board for being in attendance and "taking it on the chin" from the 1,000-or-so

"I think they're going to do what the Governor tells them to do," Norman said. "They're taking notes."

Norman gives out Gov. O'Malley's address, and walks off to cheers after saying: "Don't bicker with the sticker."

6:43 p.m.: Del. David Rudolph proposes the increase in revenue that would be seen in the implementation of the E-ZPass system can be made up by charging out-of-state drivers $40 for the AVI system, while keeping the current $10 decal in place for locals.

Rudolph said there are approximately 140,000 AVI decals out.

Rudolph said he took a great deal away from the Perryville meeting, in particular, a state-wide senior citizen discount.

6:40 p.m.: Sen. Barry Glassman follows Jacobs, praising her efforts, before giving a brief history lesson on Harford County.

Glassman, who lives in Level, compares the proposed toll hike to the toll increases suffered by farmers in the area 300 years ago.

"A toll should not cost more than your prescription co-pay," Glassman said.

"In Darlington, when they passed the toll increases, the truck traffic increases," Glassman said. "The truckers have gotten smart. They've got GPSs, and they can avoid every toll going. But you and I have to get to work at 8 o'clock, and we have to pay those tolls."

Glassman said the increases "will do harm to Harford and Cecil counties."

Glassman closes by quoting his mentor, the late Sen. Bob Hooper: "You don't have a revenue problem. Brother, you've got a spending problem."

6:35 p.m.: Sen. Nancy Jacobs is the first to speak, and turns to the crowd.

"This is not out of disrespect to you all," she said, before praising the crowd.

"I'm afraid of what has happened here is the board has come up with a one-size fits all approach to this. We're not Montgomery County, we're not a cosmopolitan area. ... We're different than those areas of the state."

Jacobs said residents go to Perry Point in Cecil County three or four times a week.

"We are not expecting hand-outs. We just want fair," she said. "We do not expect it go go up 300 percent."

Jacobs said what she has many times before: "the Hatem Bridge is a community bridge."

Jacobs calls the ICC in Montgomery and Prince George's counties one of the major reasons for the proposed toll rates, before estimating residents in those two counties earn an average income twice that of residents in Harford and Cecil counties.

"The ICC was built for them for convenience sake," Jacobs said. "The Hatem Bridge was built for us out of necessity."

Jacobs said accidents have been caused in Port Deposit by trucks taking back roads to avoid tolls over the Susquehanna River.

"We don't want to do away with the AVI sticker," Jacobs said, drawing a standing ovation from the crowd. "Please do not force an E-ZPass on these people. They don't deserve this kind of treatment."

Jacobs closes her statements to another standing ovation: "We're good hard-working people. I just hope they change their mind, and I hope you stand up here tonight and tell them why they need to change their mind."

6:28 p.m.: Elected officials will lead off the meeting, and will be granted time to speak upon arrival without wait.

6:25 p.m.: Elected officials and individuals formally representing groups and organizations will be given five minutes. Other individuals will be granted three minutes.

Those individuals will be called in the order in which they signed up.

Public comments may be submitted in writing or via a laptop in the lobby for those unable wait their turn to speak. A court reporter is also available at the sign-in table.

Thomas said the meeting is being recorded, and a formal transcript will be created. He also said members of the MdTA Board will not respond to comments or give their own.

6:17 p.m.: Beverly Swaim-Staley, Secretary of the MdTA Board, gives a brief overview of the MdTA operation.

Randy Brown, acting executive secretary of the MdTA, explains the proposed changes to tolls. Tolls would ultimately reach $8 in one direction on the Hatem and JFK bridges in Phase II, which goes into effect July 1, 2013.

6:14 p.m.: Those elected officials announced to be in attendance tonight:

Sen. Nancy Jacobs, Sen. Barry Glassman, Del. David Rudolph, Del. Wayne Norman, Del. Glen Glass, Del. Susan McComas, Del. Mike Smigiel, Del. Kathy Szeliga, Cecil Co. Commissioner Diana Broomell, Harford County Council President Billy Boniface, Harford County Councilwoman Mary Ann Lisanti, Jim Ports (representing County Exec. David Craig) and Neal Mills (on behalf of the City of Havre de Grace).

6:11 p.m.: The video concludes to boos from the crowd.

Elected officials are being introduced.

6:05 p.m.: The MdTA-produced video on bridges and toll facilities in Maryland is being presented to the audience. The same video was shown prior to the .

6:02 p.m.: Ed Thomas, the moderator of tonight's meeting, begins the meeting by informing the audience that Md. Rt. 155 will be closed as of 9 p.m. for the transport of transformers from the Susquehanna River en route to Peach Bottom, PA.

Thomas said the final public hearing will be held Thursday, July 14 at Stephen Decatur Middle School near Ocean City.

Thomas reminds the audience that no final decisions on proposed toll increases have been made.

6:00 p.m.: Still waiting for the formal portion of the meeting to begin. Plenty of available seats on the right side of the gym floor. I'm situated in the front row on the right side of the room.

A few TV trucks located outside, and WJZ-TV is set up.

Members of the MdTA Board are beginning to take their seats.

5:55 p.m.: We're at the , where we'll attempt to provide a live blog of tonight's public hearing on tolls at Hatem Bridge.

The public comment session is set to begin at 6 p.m. We'll try to update as much as possible from tonight's proceedings. For a preview, click .

To read our coverage of the proposed changes to the toll rate and the discontinuation of the AVI decal program, check out the following links:

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A full list of public hearings can be found here.