PHIA Meeting Notes: Legislators Look Back on 'Frustrating' Session

The Perry Hall Improvement Association held a forum with state legislators Thursday evening at the Perry Hall Library. 

"The PHIA is a non-political organization," said Dennis M. Robinson Jr., association president. "But we supported this opportunity for the voters to hold their representatives accountable."

Each representative gave a brief speech at the beginning, followed by a question-and-answer session. 

The following state delegates and senators participated: 

Legislative District 7

• Sen. J.B. Jennings (R), who was represented by Chief of Staff Richard Reinhardt
• Del. Richard K. Impallaria (R)
• Del. Patrick L. McDonough (R), who was represented by his wife, Valerie McDonough

Legislative District 8

• Sen. Kathy Klausmeier (D)
• Del. Joseph C. Boteler III (R)
• Del. Eric M. Bromwell (D)
• Del. John W. E. Cluster Jr. (R)

Sen. J.B. Jennings' Chief of Staff Richard Reinhardt

Reinhardt delivered the first speech, apologizing for Jennings' absence. The senator reported to Air Force training in Georgia two weeks after the legislative session began. He will likely be deployed to Iraq.

"There have been ups and downs but we got through it," Reinhardt said.

He encouraged constituents to attend a meeting with Jennings on May 13, 8-10 a.m., at Yia Yia's Bakery in Rosedale. 

Del. Richard K. Impallaria

Impallaria explained his stance against wind energy legislation. He said he voted against it because he believed it would mostly send jobs to Virginia and the Eastern Shore.

He said he also voted against gay marriage legalization and a bill that would bar transgender discrimination in workplaces, including gender-specific industries.

“You couldn’t fire that person, you couldn’t let them go," he said. "We saw a lot of bad business legislation ... Most of what we did was kill bad business legislation." 

He added: "The good news we had in the General Assembly is that it eventually ended. We could have done even more damage." 

He called the recently passed alcohol tax "a group of people deciding that they could steal from people." 

Del. Patrick L. McDonough's wife, Valerie McDonough

Robinson introduced McDonough with a frequently repeated title: "The most patient woman in Baltimore County politics."

She said she would keep her comments brief: "I’m going to let those who represent you in Annapolis speak."

She said that her husband was leading a movement to stop a recently passed law that allows illegal immigrants to gain access to in-state tuition bill and that constituents should contact him about meetings to support the effort. 

Sen. Kathy Klausmeier 

Klausmeier said her legislative assistant spoke recently with a constituent about the recently passed alcohol tax. They said, "The Democrats let this happen.” She said that not all Democrats supported it. “But Kathy Klausmeier is a Republican, not a Democrat,” the constituent said. Klausmeier, a longtime Democrat, used the story to demonstrate her bipartisanship.

The entire delegation of District 7 and 8 voted against the alcohol tax because it was bad for business, she said. 

"On the TV, we just hear about how Republicans are doing one thing and Democrats are doing another thing ... We're partnering," Klausmeier said. 

She said it was "a very frustrating year this year ... Not only did we have a big budget deficit, but we had the pension to deal with as well ... Nothing got really  done until the end of session ... We did try to help out government workers as much as possible to make it sustainable as possible." 

She said that pension costs had doubled in the past five years and would likely triple in the near future. 

Klausmeier focused on problems with Baltimore County schools. She is leading a task force to address how the Baltimore County school board is appointed. Currently, members are appointed by the governor, with little input from or accountability to the county, she said. 

She said she would also address the effects of Rule 1300, which has been used by the school board to discourage schools from hosting craft fairs and bazaars.

In reference to changing the board's ability to restrict that, she said, "If there’s a law we may be going against, then that’s why we're here. Right, guys?"

Del. Joseph C. Boteler III

Boteler said that the session was marred by aggressive politics and partisanship. 

"This is my ninth session down in Annapolis and this was the most contentious," he said. "On the one side, we had moral issues, like gay marriage and the transgender bill. On the other side, we had the budget, in-state tuition, an alcohol tax. These were big issues that required debate." 

He said that many legislative loopholes were used to silence the opposition, which helped allow the alcohol tax to be passed. 

Because it was introduced at the end of the session, bill sponsors were given more say in who could debate the bill. "They only allowed proponents of the bill to speak. This is unusual," he said. 

"We have a two-tier sales tax system," in which different products are taxed differently, he said. "What’s going to happen in the future years, another group will find a reason to tax something else. It creates a lot of problems for small business owners ... They're going to have to buy new registers or reprogram registers." 

He said he would address the tax during the special session. He said that some taxes should be decided by referendum. 

He added that he believes that some components of the in-state tuition for illegal immigrants violate federal law. 

Del. Eric M. Bromwell

Bromwell spoke about his Perry Hall roots. "I live in Perry Hall, born and raised ... I live behind the McDonald's and the Kentucky Fried Chicken," he said, adding that he has represented the district for the past nine years. 

As a Democrat, he said, he works to represent the evenly split area. "Sometimes it’s not always as simple as Democrat and Republican." 

He said that he led the floor fight opposition to the state alcohol tax. 

"When it came to the alcohol tax ... Annapolis is full of people who have never owned or worked in a business." 

"That bill’s going to go into effect on July 1, one of the busiest weekends of the year for all of the restaurants ... There just aren’t enough people down there with experience in a small business ... It’s where I came from ... It’s something that’s important for me." 

He said he also opposed the in-state tuition bill for illegal immigrants. "It passed by just a few votes. It split my party, as many Baltimore County Democrats supported as opposed it." 

He said he chairs a facilities and occupations subcommittee and allows only bills that gain unanimous support from both parties to leave his subcommittee. "It’s important to me that we always have Republicans and Democrats. It's important to have everyone come together for a common goal." 

He said that during the alcohol tax floor fight, debate was cut off. "I can’t come home to this district and say that only one side gets to be heard," he said.

"I knew when I came up against the alcohol tax, I was gambling with the position I hold. I’m prepared to lose it if I have to," Bromwell said.

Del. John W. E. Cluster

Cluster said, "The budget was a big battle this year." He said that the Republicans are often called the party of "no" because they oppose the Democrats' budget without forming their own.

But this year, he said, the Republicans proposed a budget that would have cut $621 million from the budget, and eliminated the deficit within two years. 

"I think it’s appropriate that we cut our budget," he said. 

He focused on the delegation's united front against in-state tuition for illegal immigrants and the alcohol tax.

As a former police officer, he spoke about several law enforcement bills that he either opposed or supported this past session. "One of the fights was giving  inmates with life in prison parole," he said.

Before a recent bill passed, the governor had to sign off if someone with a life sentence was approved for parole, he said. Now, if those forms that would grant parole sit unsigned on the governor's desk for an extended period of time, parole could be granted automatically. 

Cluster said there were 2,500 murderers and rapists in Maryland who could become eligible for parole because of the new law. 

"As a former police officer ... Personally, I’ve locked up a number of people who have committed 2-3 murders," he said. "The kid killed in Parkville on Perring Parkway was killed by someone who had committed another murder." 

"Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough votes to stop it."

He said that moral issues also dominated the session. He added that he sat through a nine-hour meeting about same-sex marriage, where emotionally charged testimonies were often difficult to listen to.