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September 24, 2023

Talbot Spy

Nonpartisan Education-based News for Talbot County Community

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Judge: Md. Must Continue Enhanced Federal Unemployment Benefits; Hogan Administration Won’t Appeal

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A Baltimore City Circuit Court judge issued a ruling on Tuesday that will maintain Maryland’s participation in enhanced federal unemployment benefits.

Judge Lawrence Fletcher-Hill issued a preliminary injunction shortly before 10 a.m. requiring the Hogan administration to continue offering federally funded expanded unemployment benefits.

Gov. Larry Hogan

Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) had sought to end Maryland’s participation in the federal programs on July 3, but two lawsuits filed by unemployed workers led Fletcher-Hill to issue, last weekend, a temporary restraining order which maintained the federal unemployed benefits until the end of the day Tuesday.

At issue are the federal unemployment programs that maintain benefits for those who have been unemployed for more than 26 weeks and offer $300 payments to workers who, historically, have not been eligible for benefits — such as independent contractors, self-employed and gig workers.

Although these federal programs are slated to expire on Sept. 6, at least 25 states led by Republican governors are halting enhanced unemployment benefits early, blaming the federal programs for a shortage of workers.

But lawmakers and advocates for unemployed workers said ending the program early would harm struggling workers and the state’s economy by foregoing an estimated $1.5 billion in federal funding for the expanded unemployment benefits.

Fletcher-Hill agreed that the plaintiffs showed they would suffer “significant personal hardship” if the benefits terminated early.

“Plaintiffs have been strained economically and emotionally by the pandemic. In its global scope and in the anxiety that almost all people experience over the threat of disease, the impact of the pandemic has been universal,” Fletcher-Hill wrote. “But the brief stories of these Plaintiffs reminds the Court that the impact of the pandemic has been cruelly uneven.”

Fletcher-Hill’s opinion hinged, in part, on a law passed by the Maryland General Assembly during the 2021 legislative session.

That bill required the Hogan administration to “expand access to unemployment benefits or reduce bureaucratic hurdles to prompt approval of unemployment benefits” and to cooperate with the U.S. Department of Labor to the fullest extent possible.

“We saw last year that the Hogan administration was not going out of its way to ensure that people who earned unemployment benefits got them,” said Sen. James Rosapepe (D-Prince George’s), a sponsor of the bill, after the judge’s injunction. “…We knew there was the danger that they wouldn’t take advantage of the economic support for Maryland that the federal government could provide.”

The benefits have been the focus of multiple hearings since early this month.

By the time a hearing on the preliminary injunction was scheduled Monday, only a few weeks of the state’s participation in the program were still disputed.

During testimony on Monday, Maryland Labor Secretary Tiffany P. Robinson said the state would maintain benefits through at least mid-August because of required reporting deadlines by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Tuesday’s injunction was the latest in a string of court defeats for the Hogan administration.

Over the Independence Day weekend, Fletcher-Hill issued the temporary restraining order, which Hogan unsuccessfully appealed.

In a statement, Hogan spokesman Michael Ricci said the administration fundamentally disagreed with the judge’s decision but will not appeal the injunction.

“While we firmly believe the law is on our side, actual adjudication of the case would extend beyond the end of the federal programs, foregoing the possibility of pursuing the matter further,” he wrote, noting that half of states have moved to end the programs early.

In the statement, the governor’s office maintained that the program was hindering economic recovery efforts in Maryland, a point of national debate.

“This lawsuit is hurting our small businesses, jeopardizing our economic recovery, and will cause significant job loss,” Ricci wrote.

Beginning next week, work search requirements for federal program beneficiaries will go into effect, and claimants will have to search for work using the Maryland Workforce Exchange, according to the governor’s office.

Read the preliminary injunction.

Read the full opinion.

By Danielle E. Gaines

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Democratic Lawmakers Optimistic as Md. Court of Appeals Declines to Hear Unemployment Case

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The legal battle over Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr.’s decision to pull the plug on supplemental unemployment benefits is expected to return to a Baltimore City courtroom in the next two weeks.

Two state lawmakers who crafted unemployment insurance legislation this year said on Monday they expect attorneys for uninsured Marylanders to prevail — and for the court to reverse Hogan’s order that benefits end two months early.

Although the administration has maintained that it was within its rights to end a supplemental $300-per-week federal payment at the beginning of July, the lawmakers said a plain reading of state law suggests otherwise.

Sen. Jim Rosapepe

“It’s pretty clear — from [pre-existing] law and the 2021 law — that the legislature wants the state to maximize help for its unemployed workers,” said Sen. James C. Rosapepe (D-Prince George’s). “That means making the rules and taking the money that the federal government allows Maryland to use to help people.”

Rosapepe and Del. Lorig Charkoudian (D-Montgomery) sponsored legislation this year — Senate Bill 893 and House Bill 1002 — to prevent the state from leaving money on the table.

The circuit court ruling that temporarily blocks the state from ending benefits 60 days early quoted from the legislation, noting “…the General Assembly’s pandemic-specific interest in requiring that the Maryland Labor Secretary review federal regulations and guidance to identify ways to ‘expand access to unemployment benefits.’”

“That provision… reinforces the desirability, expressed by the General Assembly, of seeking all forms of federal assistance,” the court wrote.

The federal supplemental unemployment benefits are due to expire in early September.

Gov. Larry Hogan

Hogan has repeatedly said he was justified in ending them early because employers are having a difficult time filling vacant positions, a phenomenon he has blamed on the checks that unemployed workers are receiving.

“There are record numbers of jobs available, and this program is making it harder to fill them, and hurting our restaurants and small businesses,” said the governor’s communications director, Mike Ricci, in a statement on Monday.

“The White House and the U.S. Secretary of Labor agree that governors can take this action, and most already have. We are confident the courts will ultimately rule in favor of our fight to get more Marylanders back to work and continue a booming economic recovery.”

Two dozen governors, almost all Republicans, have acted as Hogan has.

Early on Monday, Court of Appeals Chief Judge Mary Ellen Barbera issued an order declining the Hogan administration’s request to hear the case.

The case will return to Baltimore City Circuit Court, which is expected to hold a hearing on a longer-term preliminary injunction before the temporary restraining order expires on July 13.

On Saturday, as required by the restraining order, the Hogan administration sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Labor rescinding its notice to end participation in the expanded federal unemployment insurance programs. At the same time, Labor Secretary Tiffany P. Robinson said the state’s rescission letter would serve as notice that the state intends to seek an end to its participation in the unemployment programs on July 14, the day after the Circuit Court’s current order expires.

Rosapepe said Hogan was not only legally wrong to curtail benefits, he was wrong as a matter of policy.

Ending benefits in July rather than September, he said, would cost the state an estimated $1.5 billion in federal aid, with no state match required.

Out-of-work Marylanders would be certain to spend that money immediately on food, rent and other essentials, he maintained, boosting the state’s economy. “It helps everybody,” he said.

Rosapepe said he and Charkoudian were motivated to craft legislation this year after learning that the White House intended to supplement unemployment benefits that were due to expire in March — and to maintain eligibility for newly eligible “gig” workers.

The House version of their bill passed the House on a party-line vote, 95-40, on March 18.

The Senate version was approved unanimously, 45-0, the following day.

“The law, the facts, the intention, the context, all say the same thing, that the legislature intended to make sure these folks are protected — and that the state is protected,” Rosapepe said.

By Bruce DePuyt and Danielle E. Gaines

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Democrats Slam Hogan’s Decision to End Expanded Unemployment Benefits, Look to Block Action

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Alarmed at the prospect that needy families will be hurt by Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr.’s decision to end supplemental unemployment benefits in early July, members of the General Assembly scrambled on Wednesday to blunt — and perhaps block — his action.

Legislative leaders sought advice from Attorney General Brian E. Frosh (D) about a possible special session — and a powerful committee chairman said he will introduce legislation to advance the effective date of Maryland’s $15-per-hour minimum wage law.

The flurry of activity was set in motion by Hogan’s decision to end the $300-per-week supplemental unemployment insurance benefit that some Marylanders have been collecting, effective July 3.

The state will also stop providing a $100-per-week payment that “mixed earners” — typically gig workers who have multiple sources of wage income — have been receiving.

In addition, people who have been out of work for more than 26 weeks will see their benefits end.

Congress approved enhanced payments last year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In announcing his actions, Hogan pointed to the state’s improving economy and the surge in the state’s supply of vaccines. Even though 70% of adults have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, the governor said many employers are having trouble finding workers.

Two dozen Republican governors have taken similar steps, with many arguing that jobless benefits create a disincentive to seek work.

More than 175,000 Marylanders receiving Pandemic Unemployment Assistance — which expanded eligibility to the self-employed, independent contractors and gig workers — and those receiving payments after extended periods out of work — more than 86,000 people as of May 8 — would lose benefits entirely under Hogan’s action.

All Marylanders receiving unemployment would stop receiving an enhanced $300 payment. As of May 15, there were 42,895 continued unemployment claims in the state; an additional 8,625 new claims were filed in the week ending May 22.

In a letter to Hogan, Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) and Unemployment Insurance Oversight Committee co-chairwoman Kathy Klausmeier (D-Baltimore County) wrote, “Solving problems requires more than buying into partisan narratives that ignore the very real plight of countless Marylanders facing complex futures.”

The lawmakers urged the governor to reconsider his actions and look at ways to incentivize people back into the labor force, such as those adopted by Colorado.

If Hogan fails to alter his position on supplemental unemployment benefits, the leaders wrote, ”our chamber will be forced to consider all other tools at our disposal to ensure our state’s prosperity.”

The fiscal year 2022 budget was approved by the General Assembly earlier this year — and lawmakers were unclear on Wednesday whether they have the power to force Hogan to reverse his stance. Lawmakers adjourned in April and are not scheduled to return to Annapolis until January.

Comptroller Peter V.R. Franchot (D) urged lawmakers to consider an emergency special session to insist that Hogan keep the payments flowing.

In an interview, Frosh said it would be a challenge for lawmakers to find a way to block Hogan immediately.

“It’s going to be tough to get it done right away, but it may be possible,” he said. “We’ll see.”

A former legislator from Montgomery County, Frosh hammered Hogan for ending federally-funded benefits at a time when many out-of-work residents have yet to find new jobs.

“The fact is, if you’re looking to help the economy and help businesses, the best thing you can do is put money in the hands of low-income families, because it goes right back out the door,” he said. “They spend it.”

Frosh called the supplemental payments “a lifeline for folks who are unemployed” — and he said GOP claims that benefits discourage job-seeking are “fallacious.”

Although the unemployment rate has dropped since the height of the pandemic, the attorney general said many jobs don’t pay enough for people to make ends meet, a claim echoed by Del. Dereck E. Davis (D-Prince George’s), the chairman of the Economic Matters Committee.

Davis told Maryland Matters he will introduce legislation in January to move up the effective date of Maryland’s $15-an-hour minimum wage law by 2 1/2 years.

Under his proposal, employers with 15 or more workers would be required to pay at least $15/hour effective on July 1, 2022, instead of January 1, 2025.

Employers with fewer than 15 employees would have to boost pay starting on July 1, 2023, instead of January 1, 2026.

“I don’t think we need to take away the benefits. I think we need to increase the wages,” Davis said. “It’s simple economics.”

Davis said he was motivated to offer the legislation in response to Hogan’s actions on Tuesday.

Legislative Black Caucus Chairman Darryl Barnes (D-Prince George’s) will co-sponsor the measure, which has the support of Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County).

“If this is strictly dollars and cents, what that tells me is that they’re not paying enough,” Davis said.

Senate Minority Leader Bryan W. Simonaire (R-Anne Arundel) said Davis’s proposal buttresses his belief that the General Assembly is lurching to the left.

“It’s a constant attack on small business, without the balance,” he said. “This is just another way they can redistribute wealth. … Thank God we have Hogan in office to provide a little balance to the legislature.”

Davis said he will pre-file his bill — and he intends to hold a hearing on it at 2 p.m. on the first day of the 2022 session.

The state’s top fiscal officers also hammered Hogan for ending supplemental benefits.

Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp (D) said the move will cause the most harm to single women with children or older dependents, who will now live in “greater misery.”

Franchot, a candidate for governor, noted that the supplemental federal benefits are set to expire on Sept. 6. He said pandemic-era stimulus payments to individuals and businesses have helped the state’s economy weather the pandemic because they are “economic multipliers.”

“We’re giving up, voluntarily, $1.5 billion in additional economic stimulus,” he said. “And it’s not even our money. It’s coming from Washington.”

“This is about compassion for those who are suffering through no fault of their own,” Franchot added. “The end of the pandemic is in sight. We owe them a bridge to it.”

Del. Kathy Szeliga (R-Baltimore and Harford counties) applauded Hogan’s action.

“With so many businesses unable to fully operate because they cannot find workers, it makes sense,” she said. “There are ‘help wanted’ signs everywhere. Americans are logical. If you pay them to stay home, they will. It’s time to get people back in the labor market and working for a brighter future for themselves and their families.”

An organization representing small business owners also said it welcomed Hogan’s decision.

“Small business owners have been among the hardest hit by the COVID-19 crisis. While they are seeing their sales grow amidst a steady economic recovery, a record 44% of owners reported job openings that could not be filled in NFIB’s latest jobs report,” said Mike O’Halloran, the head of NFIB-Maryland.

“The Governor is right to call this a ‘critical problem.’ Now that capacity restrictions and closings are behind us, we’re hopeful these jobs will quickly be filled as the summer is unofficially underway.”

Even if lawmakers don’t return to Annapolis, they hope to pressure him to allow benefits to flow an additional month — until early August — to give jobless Marylanders more time to find work.

“It’s not like he’s saving the state money by doing this,” Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) said.

Late on Wednesday, the nine Democratic members of Maryland’s congressional delegation issued a statement urging Hogan to reconsider cutting off the benefits.

“…The governor unnecessarily bowed to partisan pressure and ignored the needs of struggling workers and families. We urge the governor to reconsider this decision, which will cost our state money in the long run — and wastes federal resources we fought hard to secure,” the lawmakers wrote. “Marylanders are anxious to get back to work, but this pandemic is not over and many unemployed Marylanders are still suffering.”

By Bruce DePuyt and Danielle E. Gaines

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Hogan Joins GOP Governors in Ending Supplemental Unemployment Aid

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Maryland will join two dozen other Republican-led states whose governors have decided to end enhanced unemployment benefits, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. announced late Tuesday.

The move, which takes effect on July 3, will end the $300 supplemental weekly payment that some out-of-work residents have been receiving under the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program.

Hogan’s decisions will end unemployment insurance checks at 26 weeks.

A pandemic-era change extended them to 39 weeks, but that will expire early next month.

Hogan’s move also ends a $100-per-week payment available to “mixed earners” — typically gig workers who have multiple sources of income.

In making the announcement, Hogan (R) cited Maryland’s improving economy, the increased availability of COVID-19 vaccines, and the growing number of “Help Wanted” signs springing up around the state.

The moves come as Republican leaders express the concern that unemployment assistance is keeping some workers from seeking new jobs.

“While these federal programs provided important temporary relief, vaccines and jobs are now in good supply,” said Hogan, a potential 2024 candidate for president, in a statement.

“And we have a critical problem where businesses across our state are trying to hire more people, but many are facing severe worker shortages. After 12 consecutive months of job growth, we look forward to getting more Marylanders back to work.”

Democrats said Hogan’s decision will harm working families.

“There have been many thoughtful decisions made by Governor Hogan during this pandemic. This is not one of them,” said Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) in a statement.

“This rash and rushed decision will hurt Marylanders who have been hit the hardest during the pandemic, having lost jobs through no fault of their own. It feeds into a hard right-wing narrative that denies human dignity, puts profits over people, and puts politics over sound economic research.”

Del. Dereck Davis (D-Prince George’s) said the state should have kept the commitment it made to keep enhanced benefits in place through August — particularly in light of difficulties that the Maryland Department of Labor had getting checks to some applicants.

“It’s easy to make the claim that folks are taking advantage or folks don’t want to work,” Davis said. “I think people do want to work.”

Many of the 24 Republican governors who decided to end supplement benefits in May said the aid served as a crutch. But research distributed by the economics team at JPMorgan Chase last week cast doubt on that theory.

The move to cut federal unemployment benefits seems “tied to politics, not economics,” those economists concluded, according to CNBC.

“While some of these states have tight labor markets and strong earnings growth, many of them do not,” researchers wrote.

Last month, Hogan — a business tycoon before entering politics — hinted that the state would soon curtail supplemental benefits.

“We’re hearing over and over again about businesses not able to staff up because people won’t come back to work,” he told reporters on May 14.

Davis, who chairs the House Committee on Economic Matters, said many of the people who are still out of work are struggling with child care issues, sick parents and other concerns.

He accused the state of “pulling the rug” from people who are in need, despite a commitment to continue passing on federal assistance to unemployed Marylanders through the summer.

“We could have waited. Another two months wasn’t going to kill us,” he said.

According to the statement issued by Hogan’s office, Maryland has “prioritized” the reopening of child care centers. “As of today, 92% of licensed providers in Maryland are open and operating.”

Since March 2020, the State of Maryland has paid out more than $12.3 billion in unemployment benefits to 730,759 recipients, resolving more than 97% of claims, the statement added.

In addition to ending the pass-through of supplemental federal benefits, Maryland has reinstated the requirement that aid recipients engage in three “reemployment activities” each week, beginning on July 4.

Those who fail to do so may become ineligible for future benefits.

Out-of-work Marylanders can submit a job application through the state’s workforce exchange, complete an American Job Center workshop, or attend a job fair.

Additional employment opportunities and services can be found at labor.maryland.gov/employment.

By Bruce DePuyt

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Homelessness in Maryland Worsens During COVID-19 Pandemic

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The coronavirus pandemic has increased the strain on groups that work to prevent homelessness in Maryland, with experts saying single mothers and people of color are being hurt the most.

Multiple advocacy groups have expanded their programs to try to handle the surge in cases, as one agency said requests for help have nearly tripled from March to early October.

“It was already concerning last year because we had 239 clients total, all of 2019, and (as of Oct. 14), I have 600,” said Carol Ott, tenant advocacy director at the Fair Housing Action Center. “And the overwhelming majority of these people are Black, single women with children.”

Of all 2020 tenants through early October who needed financial assistance at the Fair Housing Action Center, 67% are women and 57% are Black.

“Sadly, those two numbers rarely change much. We always see a majority of Black women, most with children,” Ott said.

But the high numbers recently have been triggering a lot of alarm bells, she said.

In April, people rushed to file for unemployment once being laid off, but as of October, some were still waiting for their benefits to come through, Ott said.

Ott said some tenants who were evicted in January and February before the spike in cases are not covered under some COVID assistance programs. As the courts closed in March once the pandemic hit, it was more difficult to get their case in court and handled.

On top of the courts closing, their jobs would be lost from the layoffs due to the pandemic and they would have no means of making up the money to help themselves until their postponed court date.

With the lack of court access once the pandemic hit, the Fair Housing Action center reported increased incidences of tenant harassment and illegal evictions. Ott said she wishes that the Maryland Legislature had convened an emergency session to assess assistance.

The Maryland Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness — including members from both the state House of Delegates and the Senate — last month heard advocacy groups discuss what they needed in order to help those who are homeless and help their groups continue to support others.

Increased state funding for homelessness prevention, and direct financial assistance for people who lost their jobs because of the pandemic and had to wait several months for their unemployment payments were among the suggestions.

The Community Legal Services in Prince George’s County said that while the courts were pretty much closed from March to around August, their office therefore had to be closed, but they continued to work remotely. They assisted clients with brief advice through email.

Taylor Williams at Community Legal Services said the bulk of their clients are Hispanic, Latino, African American, and single mothers.

Single mothers with school-age children are facing new struggles with classes in session this fall.

“It’s really difficult to tell a woman you have to go find a job during a pandemic with two small children who are out of school,” said Ott. “Child care is a huge issue with a lot of our tenants. Most of them are people who are used to working … and they want to go back to work, but what are they supposed to do with their children?”

Executive Director Beth Benner at the Women’s Housing Coalition in Baltimore said having children makes it more complicated to get back on your feet. On top of the economic issues and mental health or physical issues, they also need to juggle keeping their kids in school while making them feel stabilized and loved.

While most of their clients are women and single mothers, 85-95% of their clients at any time are people of color, Benner said.

Benner said 39% of Marylanders are at or below that threshold of basically living paycheck to paycheck as of September, according to the United Way of Central Maryland.

Gov. Larry Hogan, R, issued an eviction prevention moratorium at the beginning of the pandemic that runs until Dec. 31.

This has meant an increase in illegal evictions and smaller landlords going around this moratorium by not renewing leases in which tenants have less protection in these cases in court, according to the Fair Housing Action Center.

The Women’s Housing Coalition reported that a second wave of the virus would bring more unemployment, with the cold weather curtailing businesses that moved outdoors, and will cause a dramatic increase in homelessness.

Gov. Larry Hogan, R, this week announced increased restrictions in the state for some businesses as the virus has spiked in recent days.

In 2019, the National Alliance to End Homelessness reported that 6,561 people were homeless on any given night in Maryland. Seventeen out of 10,000 people were homeless in one night in January of 2019 in the United States, according to the Aspen Institute.

The Aspen Institute estimated in August that 30 million to 40 million people could be at risk for eviction in the next few months.

It was estimated that at the beginning of the pandemic, 400,000 units would need to be created in the United States in order to safely socially distance, isolate, and protect the homeless against the virus in place of the crowded shelters that typically are used, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

For those who need stable housing, the Women’s Housing Coalition reported that there are only three available units for every 10 families in Maryland who need them.

The Housing Coalition said there is a need for a low barrier to entry for all affordable housing through a more effective and efficient process for paperwork and inspections.

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.

Environmental Justice Advocates Sound Alarm Over Eastern Shore Pipeline

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The proposed Eastern Shore Pipeline Project, which would bring fracked natural gas from Delaware into Somerset County, runs primarily through low-income communities of color, a recent analysis by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network found.

Out of the 40 census blocks surrounding the proposed pipeline route through Maryland, only four were not identified as potential environmental justice populations. There are especially large majority minority and low-income populations concentrated around Salisbury in Wicomico County, where the proposed pipeline project would begin. The study also found a large census tract with over 70% minority population and 24% of low-income residents adjacent to the proposed pipeline in Somerset County.

The natural gas pipeline already exists in Delaware and Wicomico County in Maryland, but this project would extend it from Wicomico to Somerset County, one of three counties in Maryland that do not have access to natural gas and have missed economic opportunities because of it, according to Daniel K. Thompson, executive director of the Somerset County Economic Development Commission.

With an unemployment rate at 9.1% and the highest poverty rate in the state at 23.4%, Somerset County would greatly benefit from access to natural gas, as it would provide additional tax revenue, decrease local businesses’ energy costs and help create more jobs, Thompson said. Mountaire Farms, the chicken processing company that is waiting to invest an additional $5 million and add five to seven new jobs, as well as Somerset Crossing, a development project in Princess Anne that will create 75-100 new jobs, will benefit immediately after natural gas is made available in Somerset County, Thompson said.

“Somerset County has many challenges such as high unemployment, high poverty rates, high energy cost, etc. Therefore, why should one of the most challenged counties in Maryland not have access to natural gas, when other counties enjoy the benefits?” he said.

Environmentalists argue that expanding gas infrastructure is short-sighted, as companies like the Chesapeake Energy Corporation (not affiliated with Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, the pipeline company) filed for bankruptcy this summer and many more are expected to do so by the end of next year. Rather, electrifying buildings is a lower cost alternative compared to gas and leads to lower energy bills in the long-run, according to Energy and Environmental Economics, Inc., an energy consulting firm.

“It is economically foolish to build the very expensive polluting infrastructure of gas pipelines and equipment, which is already outpriced by highly competitive and non-polluting solar and wind,” John Groutt of the Wicomico Environmental Trust said in a statement. “The pipelines will become worthless stranded assets within a very few years, leaving Maryland taxpayers to continue paying for it for years to come.”

The two major recipients of the extended pipeline are the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) and the Eastern Correctional Institution, a medium security state prison. The Maryland Environmental Service signed a contract with Chesapeake Utilities to build the pipeline last year, which now needs to obtain wetlands permits from the Board of Public Works in order to begin construction.

Currently, the Eastern Correctional Institution generates heat by burning wood chips, while UMES generates heat by burning propane and oil.

“We’ve long sought a more environmentally friendly source of energy to provide electric and thermal needs for ECI, and natural gas seemed like a natural clean, reliable source of energy,” said Dan Faoro, spokesman of Maryland Environmental Service. “It’s far cleaner than the wood-chips that they’ve been using.”

The proposed pipeline in Somerset would only increase the state’s overall gas use by .0001%, said Justin Mulcahy, a spokesman for Chesapeake Utilities Corporation. “While this is an incremental project in the context of Maryland, it provides major environmental and economic benefits for Somerset County,” he said.

Even so, it is not smart to replace dirty sources of energy with another, environmentalists claim. “Fracked gas is just as bad, if not worse, than coal over a 20-year time frame,” Anthony Field, the Maryland campaign coordinator of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, said during a news conference this week.

Jailynn Britt, a student at UMES, sees the proposed pipeline project as a “grave injustice,” threatening the soil and water that UMES, a historically black college and university, depends on for its agriculture research. “This pipeline provides no sustainable benefits to the school,” she said in a press conference Tuesday.

Although MES called the procurement process “exhaustive and competitive,” alternative energy proposals were not considered from the beginning. In its request for proposals, MES asked specifically for a “natural gas pipeline” to supply the Eastern Correctional Institution and UMES campus.

Without looking into alternative energy sources, such as solar, wind, and geothermal energy, MES cannot claim that natural gas is the cleanest and most effective energy source for the prison and the university, environmentalists said.

In July, the Maryland Board of Public Works unanimously voted to pay contractors more than $500,000 to upgrade facilities at the Eastern Correctional Institution so that it could accept gas as a fuel source. But environmentalists pointed out that this was awarded before the correctional institution obtained the permits needed for construction by the state. The Board of Public Works may decide on the wetlands permit for the first portion of the pipeline as early as next Wednesday.

The CCAN report also found that Salisbury is particularly a high-risk area, not only because of how dense the population is, but also because the pipeline project envisions building a renewable natural gas facility there, which would convert organic material from the poultry industry, such as manure and food waste, into renewable natural gas. But this incentivizes more waste production, Field said.

However, since excess organics produce greenhouse gas emissions that flow into local waterways, converting excess organic material into fuel “will help protect the environment and keep local waterways clean,” Chesapeake Utilities Corporation spokesman Mulcahy insists. Otherwise, he said, the excess organic material would have been sent to a landfill, where it would decompose and release greenhouse gas emissions that are used as fertilizers or incinerated, which contributes to air pollution.

Still, environmentalists claim that renewable natural gas is expensive and limited in supply. A report by Earthjustice and Sierra Club found that the total potential supply of renewable natural gas cannot replace even a portion of the existing demand for fossil gas by 2040. Furthermore, large-scale farms that produce lots of waste are dangerous sources of methane, a strong greenhouse gas.

“While states across the country are moving away from gas, Maryland put its thumb on the scale for gas, foregoing the opportunity for comprehensive review of alternatives,” Field said.

By Elizabeth Shwe

The Spy Newspapers may periodically employ the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the clarity and accuracy of our content.