Too many of our families and spoke as this is for struggling just to make ends meet. The people of maryland had become frustrated with politics as usual. Our state house at a crossroads and w he faced a pivotal choice between continuing in the same direction or putting maryland on a new and better path and all of us have to make a choice between serving a Political Party or serving the people of maryland. One only needs look to washingtoneed look to washingtos caused when hyper partisanship and inflammatory rhetoric through the end events are our h 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 politics and rhetoric used to belittle our adversaries and to inflame partisan divisions. I reminded maryland at 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 ideas riced atop based upon their merits regardless which oh 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 and stronger Brighter Future for maryland. Through internal struggles and outward chaos, we have not faltered. We have made progress with courage and unity of purpose and our citizens are more pleased with the job that we are doing in the direction that we are having them they have ever been before. [applause] together we have been doing what maryland does best we are youre 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 wa he was sworn, 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] and we put all that money back into the pockets of hardworking retirees and Small Businesses and back into our growing economy which has helped us create it an incredible economic resurgence for our state. Businesses are now returning to index expanding 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. Of People Living below the poverty rate in the nation and the highest Median Household Income in america. On growing jobs and hours that under state economy, maryland is leading by action and example and we cannot afford to turn back now 17. [applause] lets Work Together to protect hardworking residence from the federal tax overhaul will have on our taxes he 17. [applause] we may not be able to control washington but we can come together in annapolis to ensure that this money remains in the pockets of maryland citizens where it belongs. [applause] and we can protect them from Health Insurance rate increases from the failures of washington let Bipartisan Solutions stabilize rates. Last are we Work Together to enact the more jobs for marylanders act to encourage and incentivize manufacturers to create more jobs where we needed them the most and Work Together to enact 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. Expand the hometown heroes act to the Correctional Officers in this year move forward on our bill to eliminate taxes on Retirement Income of military veterans. [applause] we agree on provide paid sick leave for marylanders but put aside the politics and Work Together to fix this legislation. Dont let a bad bill killed 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 dont want annapolis to become Like Washington where bad policy is passed with the promises that a fix 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 of education and 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 ensure every Single School system in maryland is increased funding from the state. The Capital Budget invest in additional 365 million for School Construction funding, the largest investment in a decade. Fully 70 of capital 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 and third in the nation of research and Development Intensity second among all 50 states for stem employment recently named the most innovative in america we are leading by action and example we cannot afford to turn back now be 17 lets Work Together to pass the protector or student act because the status quo simply is not good enough for marilyns 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 our children and their futures and giving every 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 across maryland making record investments for innovative traffic relief with major improvements to i95, the capital beltway, 270 and baltimorewashington parkway. 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 purple line is underway which represents the largest Public Transit project in america. We have been breaking records for three straight years. And marshall is the number one airport in the region in one of the most thriving airports in the nation. [applause] while 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 bay trust fund. [applause] to bring the stakeholders together to hammer out a compromise that is one of the most significant initiatives to clean up the bay in a generatio 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 initiative to protect the bay. On the latest annual report card Chesapeake Bay receive the highest core in a quartercentury. Pushing landmark legislation to cement our states position as a national and International Leader to combat Greenhouse Gas emissions and expand the Climate Change commission, enacted the clean water commerce act, clean cars 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] maryland is leading by action and example and we cannot afford to turn back now. Last year opioid related death exceeded death from firearms and Motor Vehicle fatalities combined. We were the first date of the nation in march to declare a state of emergency in response to this crisis. Committing half a billion dollars towards fighting this epidemic with Substance Abuse disorders with a four pronged approach focus on education, prevention, treatment, and enforcement. But yet this problem is continuing to destroy lives and tear up families and communities in our state and all across america. Two weeks ago i got a letter a mom from saulsberry writing about her son chad, a four year veteran of the United States army who served a 15 month to her lung dash t5 in iraq struggling with ptsd and addiction he went through difficult times but then he got clean and was turning his life around. I had the opportunity to meet chad when they spoke of his graduation from welding school. Karen sent me a picture from that day of the three of us. I have it with me today and in her letter she wrote that on december 17, chad tragically died at the age of 29 after overdosing on heroin mixed with morphine and fentanyl. His mom and 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 to gang legislation including the new rico statute with new criminal Intelligence Network to assist police and prosecutors to go after to take down the people who are responsible for so much of the violence in our state. This year crackdown on those criminals who use guns to commit crimes by passing tougher minimum sentences. [applause] and past truth in sentencing legislation that repeat criminals for the full sentence without the possibility of parole or probation. [applause] lets strengthen the game statutes to help take down the drug dealing criminal gang enterprises and work with us to look at Human Trafficking is a Violent Crime b17. [applause] and to finally pass the repeat sexual predator prevention act and 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 great survivor Family Protection act and i will sign it into law the moment it reaches my desk b17. [applause] this year passing the Transparency Act of 2018 so maryland can join the 43 other states that require legislative deliberation to be live streamed to the public to help us but 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 public trust we represent the interest of all the people we were elected to serve, put partisanship and selfinterest decide to join together with the overwhelming majority of marylanders to end the practice of gerrymandering and 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 deals of office, i said to those who would drive us to the extremes of either party, let me remind you that maryland has always been a state of middle temperament. I ask 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 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] [inaudible conversations]