Regulatory Overhaul Panel Causes Concern In Maryland
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s appointment last month of business leaders to guide a broad regulatory overhaul has sparked concerns that he’ll roll back important protections for workers, consumers and the environment.
The commission is one of at least three panels examining how the state can improve its efforts to foster business growth. Others include the Maryland Economic Development Commission, creation by Gov. Parris Glendening (D) in 1995, and the Maryland Economic Development and Business Climate Commission, which senior Democrats established in 2014.
The latter panel released a report in February identifying three problems with Maryland’s regulatory environment, all of which dealt with how agencies enforce protections rather than the rules themselves.
The report said agencies don’t allow common-sense exceptions, often exceed the prescribed timelines for making decisions and refuse to communicate with applicants about how to interpret rules. It called for “a cultural change within the state away from its perceived image of being unfriendly to business.”
Maryland ranked 36th nationally for its regulatory environment in Forbes magazine’s Best States for Business survey last year, while neighboring Virginia ranked first.
Some analysts said the reputation is unwarranted.
“When I hear people say how bad Maryland is for business, I have to laugh, because the state has an affluent customer base, great schools, a highly educated workforce, and we benefit from our location as part of the Northeast corridor and our proximity to the federal government,” said Benjamin Orr, executive director of the Maryland Center on Economic Policy.
