Government
Jones Chosen as New Md. House Speaker
WASHINGTON INFORMER — Maryland Del. Adrienne Jones of Baltimore County was unanimously chosen Wednesday as the state’s new House speaker during a special session among her colleagues. Jones, who served as speaker pro tem to organize House sessions when the late House Speaker Michael Busch wasn’t in attendance, becomes the state’s first woman and African American to hold the position.
By William J. Ford
ANNAPOLIS — Maryland Del. Adrienne Jones of Baltimore County was unanimously chosen Wednesday as the state’s new House speaker during a special session among her colleagues.
Jones, who served as speaker pro tem to organize House sessions when the late House Speaker Michael Busch wasn’t in attendance, becomes the state’s first woman and African American to hold the position.
“I’m probably going to take a deep breath,” Jones, 64, said. “I know the Baltimore region best, [but] other areas [will] not be neglected because I’m a visual person. I like to go out in areas. … I’m visual.”
According to the legislation handbook, some of the duties of the speaker includes the appointment of committee leadership, assigns bills to committee and decides all points of order. However, the speaker must also maneuver political posturing which Busch received praise for from his Democratic colleagues and Republican members.
Before Jones received the 139 unanimous votes on the House floor, the House Democratic Caucus deliberated for more than four hours while considering two additional delegates, Maggie McIntosh of Baltimore City and Dereck E. Davis of Prince George’s County, for the position.
All three lawmakers have served in the House for more than 20 years.
McIntosh, a gay white woman, and Davis who’s Black, chair two prominent committees in the House. McIntosh leads Appropriations and Davis heads Economic Matters.
Either would have made history if selected as House speaker, as only white men have held the position.
Busch, 72, had held the position since 2003 and served as the longest House speaker in state history. He died April 7, one day before the last day of the legislative session, of pneumonia following complications from a 2017 liver transplant.
According to those familiar with Wednesday’s discussions, McIntosh received 50 votes and Davis 48.
The House Republicans voted as a bloc during its session, with all 42 votes for Davis.
The winner needed 71 votes to secure the position.
To ensure caucus unity and avoid the need for GOP votes, Jones was backed by all 98 Democrats, though more progressive members of the party sided with McIntosh.
“There were a number of people that wanted to support Chairman Davis … [and] join in with the Republican Caucus,” said a teary-eyed McIntosh minutes after the Democratic Caucus meeting. “I basically said, ‘We need to stay this room until we find someone who gets 71 votes. So we stayed in this room and did it. It was the best debate I ever heard. I’m proud.”
Davis, 51, praised Jones, who stepped out of the speaker race Friday to support him.
“‘House of Cards’ doesn’t have anything on us — talk about high drama,” Davis said from the House floor. “No one will ever forget the courage, the conviction and just the strength you showed those vital few weeks of this passed legislation session guiding us through … and performing admirably. [Less than] one week ago, you were willing to step aside for me and I’m honored to step aside for you now.”
House Minority Leader Del. Nic Kipke (R-Anne Arundel County) said Jones treats every member with respect.
“She’s not a partisan person, which we really appreciate, being the minority in Maryland like Republicans are,” he said. “We look forward to working with her to solving the big problems that are in our in the state. We’re excited about her nomination and election today.”
Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. also congratulated Jones.
“Del. Jones has been a key House leader on issues including education, health and environment for years and is a natural successor to Speaker Busch,” Miller said in a statement. “I congratulate her and look forward to continuing to partner with her in the future.”
This article originally appeared in the Washington Informer.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
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Alameda County
DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland
Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.
Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.
Bay Area
MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS
San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Wednesday, January 31, 2024
Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org
***PRESS RELEASE***
MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS
HUD’s Continuum of Care grant will support the City’s range of critical services and programs, including permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and improved access to housing for survivors of domestic violence
San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.
HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) program is designed to support local programs with the goal of ending homelessness for individuals, families, and Transitional Age Youth.
This funding supports the city’s ongoing efforts that have helped more than 15,000 people exit homelessness since 2018 through City programs including direct housing placements and relocation assistance. During that time San Francisco has also increased housing slots by 50%. San Francisco has the most permanent supportive housing of any county in the Bay Area, and the second most slots per capita than any city in the country.
“In San Francisco, we have worked aggressively to increase housing, shelter, and services for people experiencing homelessness, and we are building on these efforts every day,” said Mayor London Breed. “Every day our encampment outreach workers are going out to bring people indoors and our City workers are connecting people to housing and shelter. This support from the federal government is critical and will allow us to serve people in need and address encampments in our neighborhoods.”
The funding towards supporting the renewal projects in San Francisco include financial support for a mix of permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and transitional housing projects. In addition, the CoC award will support Coordinated Entry projects to centralize the City’s various efforts to address homelessness. This includes $2.1 million in funding for the Coordinated Entry system to improve access to housing for youth and survivors of domestic violence.
“This is a good day for San Francisco,” said Shireen McSpadden, executive director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. “HUD’s Continuum of Care funding provides vital resources to a diversity of programs and projects that have helped people to stabilize in our community. This funding is a testament to our work and the work of our nonprofit partners.”
The 2024 Continuum of Care Renewal Awards Include:
- $42.2 million for 29 renewal PSH projects that serve chronically homeless, veterans, and youth
- $318,000 for one new PSH project, which will provide 98 affordable homes for low-income seniors in the Richmond District
- $445,00 for one Transitional Housing (TH) project serving youth
- $6.4 million dedicated to four Rapid Rehousing (RRH) projects that serve families, youth, and survivors of domestic violence
- $750,00 for two Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) projects
- $2.1 million for three Coordinated Entry projects that serve families, youth, chronically homeless, and survivors of domestic violence
In addition, the 2023 CoC Planning Grant, now increased to $1,500,000 from $1,250,000, was also approved. Planning grants are submitted non-competitively and may be used to carry out the duties of operating a CoC, such as system evaluation and planning, monitoring, project and system performance improvement, providing trainings, partner collaborations, and conducting the PIT Count.
“We are very appreciative of HUD’s support in fulfilling our funding request for these critically important projects for San Francisco that help so many people trying to exit homelessness,” said Del Seymour, co-chair of the Local Homeless Coordinating Board. “This funding will make a real difference to people seeking services and support in their journey out of homelessness.”
In comparison to last year’s competition, this represents a $770,000 increase in funding, due to a new PSH project that was funded, an increase in some unit type Fair Market Rents (FMRs) and the larger CoC Planning Grant. In a year where more projects had to compete nationally against other communities, this represents a significant increase.
Nationally, HUD awarded nearly $3.16 billion for over 7,000 local homeless housing and service programs including new projects and renewals across the United States.
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