Copyright 1999 The Baltimore Sun Company
THE
BALTIMORE SUN
November 19, 1999, Friday ,FINAL
SECTION: LOCAL ,2B
LENGTH:
599 words
HEADLINE: Taylor seeks changes in mass
transit funding; Speaker also urges expanded child health care, increased school
aid
BYLINE: Michael Dresser
SOURCE: SUN STAFF
BODY:
House Speaker Casper R. Taylor Jr., declaring that a time of prosperity is
ripe for "daring change," proposed a state agenda yesterday that would revamp
mass transit funding, extend health insurance to thousands of
children and adults, and increase state education aid to Baltimore and six
"distressed" counties.
The proposals are part of an ambitious
legislative package that the House Democratic leadership will promote during the
2000 legislative session, which begins Jan. 12.
Taylor's agenda draws
heavily on the state's almost $1 billion surplus, while
limiting tax cuts to the repeal of the state's inheritance tax and a research
and development tax credit for businesses. The agenda makes no
mention of broader cuts in the state income, sales or property taxes. "It's
better to spend the money on investing in the kind of infrastructure that will
return dividends to us in the future," Taylor said.
House Minority
Leader Robert H. Kittleman expressed disappointment that the agenda did not
include an acceleration of the state income tax cut passed in 1997. But he said
he was not surprised because Gov. Parris N. Glendening had opposed the idea.
"The Democratic leadership really hesitates to buck the governor," the
Howard County Republican said.
The agenda avoids calling for increased
taxes -- including a higher gas tax to shore up the state's Transportation Trust
Fund.
Instead, the speaker is proposing to dedicate a gradually
increasing percentage of the state's sales tax revenue to mass transit,
eliminating the need to pay for bus and rail lines from the trust fund.
Mass transit and highway spending compete for money from the fund, which
is fueled by the gas tax and vehicle user fees. Under Taylor's program, the fund
would be used for roads alone. Taylor said the growth in Maryland's economy over
10 years should be able to make up the loss to the general fund, which pays most
of the state's bills.
The agenda also includes a $3
million-a-year plan to subsidize commuter air service between
Baltimore-Washington International Airport and regional airports in Cumberland,
Salisbury, Hagerstown and St. Mary's County.
"You need to start looking
at a commuter airplane as a flying bus," Taylor said, noting that mass transit
fares are subsidized at 50 percent of the cost of the service. "If a commuter
airplane is a flying bus, then it ought to get a fare-box subsidy, just like any
other form of mass transit."
Taylor said the lack of air service between
BWI and the regional airports puts Western Maryland, the Eastern Shore and
Southern Maryland at a disadvantage in economic development.
Another
proposal would create a specialized court to handle complex technology-related
cases.
Other proposals in the package would:
Provide health
insurance subsidies for an unspecified number of low- income workers, especially
those who have recently been pushed off welfare rolls.
Expand the
Children's Health Insurance Program to 12,000 more children by raising the upper
income limit to about $39,000 for a family of four. The bill
would also seek to expand health care coverage for parents of children enrolled
in the program.
Build on Taylor's "One Maryland" initiative to help
seven economically lagging jurisdictions, including Baltimore, by providing
additional education aid based on the number of teachers. The formula would
encourage but not require the school systems to raise teacher pay to competitive
levels.
Guarantee substance-abuse treatment for parents at risk of
losing custody of their children.
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