The District 20 seat will soon be vacant when Congressman-elect James Raskin (D) transfers to Washington, D.C. and Delegate Will Smith (D) fills Raskin’s position in the Maryland Senate.

Two public forums will be held by the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee in January to recommend one of the six candidates pursuing the spot. Gov. Larry Hogan has 30 days to make the appointment based on the recommendations of the party committee.

Michael Botsaris is the new executive director of the Anne Arundel County Ethics Commission. Botsaris replaces Betsy Dawson, who passed away in August.

County Executive Steve Schuh stated he appointed Botsaris to establish a Republican majority on the commission and match the will of voters who elected mostly Republicans to local public offices.

Maryland Lt. Gov. Boyd K. Rutherford, as chair of the Commission to Modernize State Procurement, released a report outlining a plan to update state procurement laws. The proposed regulations will update outdated statutory language and allow individuals to file applications and reports online.

Along with the report, Maryland unveiled a new procurement website, which will act as a singular procurement communications portal providing online access to procurement information. The new procurement information website can be viewed here.

This November, voters will decide whether to approve the addition of two at-large seats on the County Council, increasing the number of council members from nine to 11.

The at-large seats would represent countywide seats instead of a specific district, which proponents argue will combat parochialism.

Neighboring high-population counties, including Montgomery County, frequently use at-large seats to better distribute resources throughout the county.

The Frederick County Ethics Commission is working to revise its standard ethics procedures and will accept comments and suggestions via email through July 27, 2016.

The following items are among the proposed changes: to establish standard procedures for filing ethics complaints; adopting a process for investigating complaints, including outlining appropriate behavior for commission members during this process; adding provisions for the issuance and enforcement of subpoenas; developing procedures for reconsidering or revising advisory opinions; and requiring annual training in ethics law for all public officials and their employees.

The commission will vote on the revised procedures on August 10.

Gov. Larry Hogan has appointed his top legislative lobbyist, Joseph M. Getty, to the Court of Appeals.

Getty has extensive policy making experience, previously serving in both the House of Delegates and Senate, but has never before worked as a judge.

The appointment is effective immediately, but Getty must still be confirmed by the Senate, which will not meet until next year’s General Assembly session.

Baltimore City’s primary election results have been ordered to be decertified by state election officials, and a precinct-level review of irregularities is being conducted.

The decision comes in response to a discrepancy between the number of voters who checked in at polling locations and the number of ballots cast, which were higher than the number of check-ins. State elections officials became concerned when they learned Baltimore city officials certified their primary election results and later located 80 provisional ballots which were never analyzed.

The investigation into these discrepancies is expected to continue throughout next week.

The State Board of Elections has proposed new pay-to-play disclosure rules and regulations.

The board seeks to align current rules with the recent legislative change requiring business entities to disclose contributions of certain subsidiaries, even if those subsidiaries do not have contracts with the state. In addition, the new regulations would increase the amount of time a vendor has to file the initial contribution disclosure form and would clarify internal disclosure obligations and processes for vendor employees and CEOs under current state law.

The proposed rules and regulations remain open for public comment through May 30, 2016.

Gov. Larry Hogan signed a pay-to-play bill, amending campaign finance reporting requirements for filers doing public business. House Bill 112 requires filers disclosing contributions to also include contributions of any subsidiary entity the filer owns or controls by 30 percent or more, regardless of whether the subsidiary is doing public business in Maryland.

A limited exception exists for publically-traded banking institutions not owned or controlled by anyone in excess of 10 percent if they are not contracted with Maryland in connection with public business.

The law takes effect October 1, 2016.

The Maryland General Assembly adjourned late Monday, April 11, 2016, after passing legislation reforming the state’s criminal justice system.

Unable to pass legislation reducing the state’s income tax during the final hours of the session, some lawmakers suggested Gov. Hogan call a special session. In response, according to the Baltimore Sun, Hogan said, “These guys can’t seem to get their act together. I’m not sure that would change with a special session.”

The Frederick County, MD Council has passed a new ordinance regarding county contracts and the size of the Frederick County Ethics Commission. The ordinance prohibits elected officials and certain family members for securing county government contracts.

Additionally, the ordinance increases the size of the Ethics Commission from five to seven members.

Gov. Hogan has established a commission to help update the state’s approach to procurement. Hogan said a new system was needed as the current approach is a patchwork of laws and processes resulting in unreliability and actually discourages participation to do business with the state.

The commission is comprised of 19 individuals with various backgrounds, including information technology, construction, engineering, law, and representatives from various state agencies.

The commission will be charged with standardizing interpretation of contracting codes, using new technology to make the procurement process more efficient, and simplifying the existing template Maryland uses for requesting proposals.

A resolution has been introduced in the Howard County Council proposing a citizen funded campaign system. The resolution would make public resources available to qualifying candidates. The resolution, if passed, would create the Commission on Citizen Funded Campaigns, which would be comprised of five county residents appointed by the council and two county residents appointed by the county executive, and would calculate estimated costs to the citizen funded campaign citizen budget.

If the resolution is passed, it would be added to ballots this year and take effect for the 2022 election cycle. The resolution will be similar to the opt-in system in Montgomery County, Maryland’s first county to have any kind of opt-in campaign finance system.

Frederick County, Maryland County Council President Bud Otis has introduced legislation to give the County Ethics Commission subpoena powers and increase the size of the commission from five to seven members. The ethics bill, which Otis submitted on September 15, includes making a violation of the lobbying rules or the financial disclosure laws a misdemeanor. The council will hear public comments on the proposals at a future meeting and then vote at a subsequent hearing, according to the Frederick News-Post.