Caroline Koutsos/Capital News Service
Construction of the Purple Line runs along Campus Drive on the campus of the University of Maryland on March 12, 2024.
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Maryland Officials Okay More Purple Line Money, but not Gladly
By SAPNA BANSIL
Capital News Service
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (March 13, 2024)—Gov. Wes Moore and the state’s chief financial officers approved nearly half a billion dollars in extra funds for the Purple Line on Wednesday, even as they condemned the embattled project’s mounting delays and escalating costs.
Nearly seven years after construction began, transit authorities returned to the Board of Public Works yet again this month, this time seeking an additional $425 million for the light-rail project. It was the fourth such request since 2016 to supplement the Purple Line’s original $5.6 billion budget.
Following the three-member board’s unanimous but reluctant approval, the total cost of the Purple Rail is now approaching $10 billion.
“Not anyone in our administration is happy that we find ourselves, once again, in a position to have to increase the cost of this project,” Moore said.
“Competence is a basic ask of the people of this state,” he added, “and we are still cleaning up this mess from years of mismanagement on this project.”
The 16-mile east-west line, designed to run between New Carrollton and Bethesda, is being built through a public-private agreement with the Purple Line Transit Partners. The group is responsible for constructing, operating and maintaining the system until 2057.
The administration of Moore’s predecessor, former Republican governor Larry Hogan, brought in private companies to work with the state on the project. The public-private partnership, known as a P3, was part of an effort to mitigate the cost burden on taxpayers. But the project has endured a number of issues, including significant construction delays and disputes with contractors.
A spokesperson for Hogan offered a different critique after Wednesday’s meeting.
“The Purple Line doesn’t need to be ‘fixed,’ it needs to be finished—and for the good of the region, that should be the sole focus of everyone involved in the project,” said Mike Ricci, a spokesperson for Hogan, currently a candidate in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate.
“We recognize Maryland Democrats are in full panic mode about Governor Hogan’s campaign, but turning a procurement meeting into a political war room reeks of desperation,” Ricci said in an email to Capital News Service.
During Wednesday’s discussion about whether to increase funding, board member Brooke
Lierman, the state’s comptroller, took aim at public-private partnerships, saying that the Purple Line demonstrates “the folly of relying on P3 models for complex, long-term transportation projects.”
“Everyone in the state of Maryland is bearing the burden of the errors made by the past administration today,” Lierman said. “I don’t enjoy voting yes on this, but we have to be committed to ensuring that we meet our obligations to the riders in the state of Maryland.”
At Wednesday’s meeting, Holly Arnold, administrator of the Maryland Transit Administration, said the Purple Line is more than 65% complete, with construction underway at 13 of 21 planned stations and 17,000 linear feet of rail installed. The expected completion of the much-delayed project has been pushed back to winter 2027.
Arnold added that the $425 million would be paid out to Purple Line Transit Partners over several years and is contingent upon achieving certain milestones, an accountability measure aimed at encouraging progress with the project.
Still, board member Dereck Davis, the state’s treasurer, lamented the project’s problems. “I just want to raise hell,” he said. He added that he’d been considering casting a “no” vote on additional funds but ultimately decided the project is too far along to abandon.
“We’re literally approaching 100% [cost increase,]” Davis said, “with no real guarantee that that’s the end.”
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Maryland Legal Aid’s Tenants’ Right to Counsel Project to Partner with the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System to Host Legal Aid Clinics
By PRESS OFFICER
Maryland Legal Aid
BALTIMORE (March 12, 2024)—Maryland Legal Aid (MLA) is partnering with the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System to host Tenants’ Rights & Housing Clinics from April through August, occurring on the first Wednesday of each month. The purpose of these clinics is to assist individuals in understanding and maneuvering through the legal landscape. Participants will be able to receive advice and begin the legal intake process with lawyers, aiding them in resolving their housing concerns.
While the primary focus of these walk-in sessions will be on issues related to housing, evictions, and tenants’ rights, Maryland Legal Aid will also be prepared to assist with a range of other civil legal concerns. This includes criminal record expungement, family law, health, consumer rights, and employment issues, offering advice and legal support to those in need.
Tenants’ Rights & Housing Clinics
• Glenarden Branch Library, Wednesday, April 3, 2024, 12–3:30 p.m.
• Oxon Hill Branch Library, Wednesday, May 1, 2024, 1–4:30 p.m.
• Laurel Branch Library, Wednesday, June 5, 2024, 1–4:30 p.m.
• Hyattsville Branch Library, Wednesday, July 3, 2024, 1–4:30 p.m.
• Fairmount Heights Branch Library, Wednesday, August 7, 2024, 1–4:30 p.m.
For general information about the Tenants’ Rights & Housing Clinics, visit https://www.mdlab.org/free-legal-clinics/.
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Blink Charging Opens Global Headquarters in Prince George’s County
Electric vehicle charging station manufacturer expands its capacity by constructing a new LEED Gold-certified 30,000-square-foot production facility in Bowie
By Rhett Butler
PGCEDC
Bowie, Md. (March 12, 2024)—Blink Charging Co., a leading global electric vehicle charging equipment provider, cut the ribbon to ceremonially open its global headquarters at a 15,000-square-foot facility in Bowie, MD, in Prince George’s County on Monday (March 11). Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer, Congressman Glenn Ivey, Biden-Harris Administration’s Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy, David M. Turk and members of Prince George’s County leadership were all on hand for the transformative moment.
Blink is expanding its manufacturing capacity by constructing a new LEED Gold-certified 30,000-square-foot production facility in Bowie. The Company’s headquarters and its new production facility at 5081 Howerton Way are contained within Melford Town Center a mixed-use business community developed by St. John Properties, Inc.
“Blink’s decision to expand its operations in Prince George’s County makes us a leader in green, sustainable manufacturing. We are proud of Blink’s confidence that the skilled workforce needed for these high-tech environment protecting jobs will be found in our County.” said David Iannucci, President & CEO, Prince George’s County Economic Development.
Blink Charging’s expansion and relocation project in Prince George’s County was made possible in part through the assistance provided by PGCEDC and funding assistance, which will be provided by the County’s Economic Development Incentive Fund (EDIF). The EDI Fund aided Blink Charging in expanding its current manufacturing facility and relocating its headquarters from Florida to Maryland.
“We are grateful for Blink’s confidence in the Prince George’s County business climate, in our quality workforce, and in their ability to capitalize on the many advantages that their Bowie site brings,” said Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. “Blink’s decision to locate its corporate headquarters and expanded production of environmentally-friendly electric vehicle charging stations here sends a strong message about their confidence in the economic growth throughout the county.”
The production facility is expected to produce more than 50,000 charging units annually to meet the rising demand for electric vehicles. With the relocation and planned manufacturing expansion, Blink hopes to increase environmentally friendly employment opportunities in the county by creating more than 60 new positions within the first year.
“Blink Charging is proud and excited to be establishing our global headquarters and production facility in Maryland, marking a pivotal moment in our journey toward a greener future,” said Blink President and Chief Executive Officer Brendan Jones. “We are committed to implementing innovative technology and manufacturing processes to enhance efficiency, capability, and output speed while maintaining quality standards and are excited to be doing it here. We thank the state of Maryland for welcoming us.”
The Maryland expansion will also support Blink’s growth by adding another production line, streamlining operations, and meeting the increasing demand for electric vehicles. This manufacturing facility will continue to adhere to U.S. “Buy American” requirements, helping the Company increase domestic manufacturing and production of its products.
Blink’s primary products and services include the Blink EV charging network, which uses proprietary, cloud-based software to operate, maintain, and track the EV charging stations connected to the network and the associated charging data. The final assembly of Series 6, Series 7, and Series 8 of L2 chargers occurs in Bowie, MD.
Blink Charging is a leading owner, operator, and provider of electric vehicle (“EV”) charging equipment and networked EV charging services. Our principal line of products and services is our Blink EV charging network (the “Blink Network”), a proprietary cloud-based software that operates, maintains, and tracks all the Blink EV charging stations and the associated charging data; EV charging equipment; and EV related services.
PGCEDC’s mission is to cultivate and promote a strong local economy that supports the growth and prosperity of entrepreneurs and businesses, dedicated to strengthening communities through business development and job creation. For more information about the services the Economic Development Corporation provides to local companies, visit www.pgcedc.com.
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Senators Hear the Case for Cutting Americans’ Work Week to 32 Hours
By TORRENCE BANKS
Capital News Service
WASHINGTON (March 14, 2024)— In 1955, Walter Reuther, head of what was then known as the United Automobile Workers (UAW), told a Senate hearing that coming technological advancements would make a four-day workweek possible.
That was the last Senate hearing on the subject for nearly 70 years. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee finally ended the draught Thursday as lawmakers debated legislation, sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, that would reduce the standard workweek to 32 hours without cutting employees’ pay.
“...Despite an explosion in technology and a massive increase in worker productivity, nothing has changed,” Sanders said. “Think about that, huge transitions we have seen in the economy. But in terms of the workweek, nothing has changed.”
Sanders said that the goal of his bill was to ensure that working-class citizens benefit from the revolutionary changes in the workplace over the past seven decades.
Introducing his measure Wednesday, Sanders said that U.S. workers had become over 400% more productive since the 1940s. Even so, people now are working longer hours at lower wages, he said.
UAW President Shawn Fain said that automation now allows a single worker to do what used to require 12 workers. Companies’ obsession with ensuring productivity every second of the day has come at the cost of workers, he said.
“When people reach the end of their lives they never say I wish I'd make more money,” Fain told senators. “What they wish for is they wish they had more time. There was a time when this phenomenon was supposed to lead to workers getting our time back, getting some of their lives back.”
Forty percent of Americans work at least 50 hours a week, and 18% of today’s workforce works more than 60 hours a week, according to research cited in Sanders’ statement.
A 2019 study published by the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that working more than 60 hours a week led to a decline in workers’ mental health compared to those who worked standard hours.
“It causes an increase in cortisol levels, which lead to heart disease, cancers, strokes,” Fain said about working extended hours during the week. “But given all those facts as someone is lucky enough to get to retire, typically when they weren't willing to work themselves to death their entire life, they face knee replacements, hip replacements, shoulder surgeries, and the rest of their lives, figuring out how they’re going to survive.”
But Liberty Vittert, a data science professor at the Olin Business School at Washington University in St. Louis, said that studies suggesting that working fewer hours leads to happiness are flawed. Vittert said that many of the studies showing an increase in happiness find the effects are short-term and that long-term studies show that happiness does not increase over time.
In addition, only companies that can cut out extra meetings and coffee breaks during the day participate in these studies, excluding more than 70% of the U.S. job economy, Vittert said.
“If you want to see those same employees really stressed out, just see what happens when their employers lay them off to hire part-time workers instead, or have to close their doors because they cannot make enough revenue,” Vittert said.
She also pointed out that older workers who cannot complete the same amount of work in fewer hours are also at a disadvantage.
Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, the ranking Republican on the panel, emphasized that there is no law preventing companies from already enacting a 32-hour workweek and that federal intervention is not necessary.
“Let’s give flexibility to workers and employers—don’t have government come in and intervene,” said Roger King, senior labor and employment counsel at the HR Policy Association.
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