Delivered the annual state of the trust address. Mr. Speaker, mr. President , members of the general assembly, distinguished guests and fellow marylanders , three years ago when i first had the honor of standard and standing before this assembly to report on the state of our state, maryland was at a critical turning point. Our state economy was floundering and lagging behind the rest of the nation in nation. Maryland was losing businesses, jobs and taxpayers at an alarming rate. Too many of our families and Small Businesses were struggling just to make ends meet. The people of maryland had become frustrated with politics as usual. Our state house at a crossroads and we we faced a pivotal choice between continuing in the same direction or putting maryland on a new and better path, and all of us had to make a choice between serving a Political Party or serving the people of maryland. One only needs look to washington to see the destruction that is caused when hyper partisanship and inflammatory rhetoric through the end events are our faith in the institutions of government. When i stood on the steps of this historic statehouse three years ago to give my inaugural address, i said that the politics that have divided our nation need not divide our state. And they warned against the and rhetoriccs used to belittle our adversaries and to inflame partisan divisions. Marylanders that our stage was better than that. Our history proved that we were better. And for the last three years, we have been. We worked hard to usher in a new spirit of bipartisanship and to create an environment of trust and cooperation, where the best based uponto the top their merit, regardless which side of the aisle they come from. And im pleased to report today the state of our state is stronger than it has been in decades. We are forging an Even Stronger in a Brighter Future for maryland. Through internal struggles and outward chaos, we have not faltered. We have made progress with courage and with clarity of purpose, and our citizens are more pleased with the job that we are doing and the direction theywe are heading, then have ever been before. [applause] together we have been doing what marylanders do best, we are leading by our actions and examples. And ladies and gentlemen, we cannot afford to turn back now. Three years ago, our most pressing task was to grow the private sector, put more people to work, make maryland more competitive and to turn our economy around. And that is exactly what we have done. [applause] the day after i was sworn in we , submitted the first balanced budget in a decade, which eliminated nearly all of the 5. 1 billion structural deficit which we inherited. We did it while cutting taxes three years in a row. [applause] [cheers] and we put all that money back into the pockets of hardworking marylanders, retirees and Small Businesses, and back into our growing economy which has helped us create an incredible economic resurgence for our state. Businesses are now returning to and expanding in maryland once again. We had the best year in maryland and the best year for job growth in a decade. We went from losing 100,000 jobs to gaining more than 110,000 jobs. [applause] we have had the fastest job growth in the midatlantic region and one of the strongest economic turnaround in america. [applause] maryland truly is open for business. We are forth among all 50 states for entrepreneurial growth, we of the Second Lowest percentage of People Living below the poverty rate in the nation, and we of the highest Median Household Income in america. Jobs and our state economy, maryland is leading by action and example and we cannot afford to turn back now. [applause] this year lets Work Together to , protect hardworking marylanders from the impact that the federal tax overhaul will have on our local and state taxes. [applause] we may not be able to control what they do in washington, but we certainly can come together in annapolis to ensure that this money remains in the pockets of marylands citizens where it belongs. [applause] and we can protect marylanders from Health Insurance rate failures caused by the of washington let bipartisan , solutions stabilize rates. Last year, we worked together to enact the more jobs for marylanders act to encourage and incentivize manufacturers to create more jobs where we needed them the most. Enact worked together to the hometown heroes act of 2017. This year lets work to pass the , more job for marylanders act 2. 0 to expand the reach of this program to additional jurisdictions and other business sectors. Lets expand the hometown heroes act, to include correctional officers. This year, lets finally move forward on our bill to eliminate taxes on the Retirement Income of military veterans. [applause] we agree on providing paid sick leave for marylanders, but put aside the politics and Work Together to fix this legislation. Do not let a bad bill kill good Small Businesses and jobs. With our proposal to provide tax incentives for Small Businesses to help offset the cost of providing these benefits for their employees. [applause] we do not want annapolis to become Like Washington where bad policy is passed with the promise that a fixed will come later. This is too important and the impact is too farreaching to risk getting it wrong. For three straight years, we have delivered record investment s in education. This year, lets continue that historic trend and do it for the fourth straight year. [applause] our budget provides the unprecedented 6. 5 billion for k12 education, which is more than the legislative formula called for. We ensured every Single School system in maryland will receive increased funding from the state. The Capital Budget invest in additional 365 million for School Construction funding, the largest investment in a decade. 70 of our Capital Budget is dedicated to education. Lets ensure that every single child in maryland has access to a worldclass education, regardless of what neighborhood they happen to grow up in. Maryland is home to americas most educated workforce, with the highest concentration of doctoral scientists and engineers in the nation. We are third in the nation for research and development intensity. Second among all 50 states for stem employment. And we were recently named the most innovative state in america. We are leading by action and example, and we cannot afford to turn back now. [applause] lets Work Together to pass the protect our students act, because the status quo simply is not good enough for marylands children. Lets Work Together to make the schools more accountable by passing the accountability and education act of 2018. [applause] no child should have to pay the price of the mistakes of adults who have failed them, this is too important to play politics. This is about our children and their futures, it is about giving every maryland child opportunities and a hope for a better future. When it comes to rebuilding the transportation infrastructure, we are moving forward with nearly all of the highest priority transportation projects in every single jurisdiction all across maryland. We are making record investments for innovative traffic relief with major improvements to the Baltimore Beltway i95, the , capital beltway, 270 and the baltimorewashington parkway. We have nearly 1000 projects totaling 9 billion currently under construction from one , corner of the state to the other. And we have already repaved more than 8000 lane miles, more than one third of the entire state highway system. Construction of the long anticipated purple line is underway, which represents the largest Public Transit project in america. We have been breaking records for three straight years. And bwi marshall has become the number one airport in the region and one of the most thriving airports in the nation. [applause] while transportation on transportation infrastructure, maryland is leading by action and example and we cannot afford to turn back now. We have fully funded chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund and open space. [applause] we brought all the stakeholders together and hammered out a compromise that is one of the most significant initiatives to clean up the bay in a generation. As chairman of the executive council, i have been leading the fight to protect and restore federal funding for the bay, and our administration has committed 4 billion toward wide ranging initiatives to protect the bay. On the latest annual report card, Chesapeake Bay received its highest score in a quartercentury. We have pushed landmark legislation to cement our states position as a national and International Leader to combat Greenhouse Gas emissions. We have expanded the Climate Change commission, enacted the clean water commerce act, clean cars act and other bills to protect our environment and grow Clean Energy Investment and we enacted cleanair standards, which are stronger than 48 other states and nearly twice as strong as the paris accord recommendations. [applause] when it comes to safeguarding our environment, maryland is leading by action and example and we cannot afford to turn back now. Last year, opioidrelated death s exceeded deaths from firearms and Motor Vehicle fatalities combined. Last march, we became the first state in the nation to declare a state of emergency in response to this crisis. We have committed half 1 billion towards the fighting the heroine and Opioid Epidemic and Substance Abuse disorders with a four pronged approach focus on education, prevention, treatment, and enforcement. And yet this problem is continuing to destroy lives and tear apart families and communities in our state and all across america. Ago, i got a letter from karen, a mother from salisbury. She wrote about her son chad, a four year veteran of the United States army who served a 15 month tour in iraq. When he returned home, he struggled with ptsd and addiction. He went through some difficult times. But then karen says he got clean and he was turning his life around. I had the opportunity to meet chad when i spoke at his graduation from welding school. Karen sent me a picture from that day of the three of us. And i have it here with me today. In her letter, karen wrote, that on 17, chad tragically died at the age of 29 after overdosing on heroin mixed with morphine and fentanyl. His mother, karen, and his family are here with us today and i want to recognize them. [applause] it was tough for karen to be here today, but she wanted to honor chad. She wanted to show us that when we talk about this crisis, we are really talking about fighting for all of the chads and karens out there and all the lives cut too short and all the families that will never be the same. That is why no matter how hard it is, we cannot ever give up this fight. [applause] we enacted tough antigame legislation, including a new maryland rico statute, with a new criminal Intelligence Network to assist police and prosecutors in going after and taking down the people who are responsible for so much of the violence in our state. This year, lets crack down on those violent criminals who use guns to commit crimes by passing tougher minimum sentences. [applause] and pass truth in sentencing legislation to require that repeat criminals serve the full sentences without the possibility of parole or probation. [applause] lets strengthen the game statutes theng help tame down take down the drug dealing criminal gang enterprises and work with us to look at Human Trafficking as a violent crime. [applause] and to finally pass the repeat sexual predator prevention act. No rapist should be allowed to maintain parental rights and no victim should be forced to interact with her attacker. I commend you for finally passing the rape survivor protector act and i will sign it into law the moment it reaches my desk. [applause] this year, passing the legislative Transparency Act of 2018, so maryland can join the 43 other states across america that require legislative deliberations to be live streamed to the public. And help us with the issue of term limits on the ballot for the people of maryland to decide this issue for themselves in november. And, in order to uphold the truly represent the interest of all the people we were elected to serve, lets put partisanship and selfinterest aside, and join together with the overwhelming majority of marylanders to end the practice of partisan gerrymandering in maryland. [applause] instead of becoming more Like Washington, lets send a message to washington by putting politics aside and coming together for all marylanders and. On that snowy day, three years ago, just after i took the oath of office, i said to those would drive us to the extremes of either party, let me remind you that maryland has always been a state of middle temperament. I asked that we seek that middle ground where we can all stand together. And ladies and gentlemen, over the past three years we have. Together we have put maryland on a new and better path and we cannot afford to turn back now. [applause] lets keep moving forward and lets continue changing maryland for the better. Thank you, god bless you, and may god continue to bless the great state of maryland. Thank you. [applause] announcer Homeland Security secretary Kiersten Nelson and Jeff Sessions will be talking about the justice departments efforts to combat Human Trafficking. On cspan2 at 9 00 eastern. And we will take you to the Republican National committees winter meeting at 10 00. In the afternoon, we will hear from the chair of the council of economic advisers about the Corporate Tax rate. Speaking at georgetown law school. And on cspan2 at 7 00 p. M. , rose mcgowan will talk about her new book brave, and her experiences in the entertainment industry. That is tomorrow on cspan2. Announcer cspans history series landmark cases returns with a look at 12 new Supreme Court cases. Each week, historians join us to discuss the constitutional issues and personal stories behind a significant Supreme Court decisions. On monday, figure 26, live at 9 00 eastern. To help you better understand each case we have a companion guide written by a veteran journalist. Landmark cases, volume 2. Plus shipping, and handling. To get your copy, go to cspan. Org. Announcer the Atlantic Council hosted a discussion about vladimir putin. We heard from the former u. S. Ambassador to russia and nato, a russian journalist, and russias first foreign minister. Ais is about an hour and half
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