State roundup: Consumer advocate joins opponents of 70-mile power line; some board of education members reluctant to stop third-graders; state gets federal environmental approval to rebuild Key Bridge

CONSUMER AWARENESS IN MARYLAND JOINS OPPONENTS OF 113-MILE HIGH-VOLTAGE LINE: Maryland’s utilities regulator joined the chorus of residents, lawmakers, environmentalists and farmers concerned about a plan to build a 70-mile (113-kilometer) power line through Carroll, Frederick and Baltimore counties. Rona Kobell/The Baltimore Banner.

SOME MEMBERS OF THE EDUCATION COUNCIL ARE AGAINST THE WITHHOLDING OF THIRD CLASS SCHOOLS: Some members protested Tuesday as the Maryland State Board of Education reviewed a proposed literacy policy that could leave students with reading difficulties behind in third grade, with one member calling it “harmful to children.” William Ford/Maryland Matters.

STATE GETS FEDERAL ENVIRO APPROVAL FOR KEY BRIDGE REBUILDING: The Maryland Transportation Authority and the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration have received federal environmental approvals to begin rebuilding the Francis Scott Key Bridge. While the project is expected to restore the positive socioeconomic and transportation impacts that the demolished Key Bridge once had, the MTA said the reconstruction will not have a negative impact on the environment or require the displacement of people or businesses. Cristina Mendez and Christian Olaniran/WJZ-TV News.

BALTIMORE LOSES TECH HUB FUNDING: Ohio, Wisconsin, Indiana and Oklahoma beat out Baltimore this month in a competition for federal dollars to build a tech hub. The loss was disappointing and surprising for the partners of the Greater Baltimore Tech Hub Consortium, which applied for a $70 million grant after receiving designation as a federal tech hub last year. Bria Overs/The Baltimore Banner.

GOVERNMENT HEALTH DEPARTMENT UNVEILS NEW OVERDOSE TRACKING TOOL: The Maryland Department of Health on Tuesday launched a new online drug overdose dashboard that lets visitors dig deeper into demographic and geographic data. The new dashboard will be updated monthly and has new features, including the ability to search by ZIP code, age, race and gender. Visitors can also look up naloxone administration by emergency medical services and nonfatal emergency room visits. From Scott Maucione to WYPR-FM.

MOORE SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDER IN ‘PLAIN LANGUAGE’: Gov. Wes Moore signed an executive order Tuesday directing state agencies to use “plain language” that provides clear and concise information on all state government documents or websites aimed at the average Maryland reader. Moore signed the four-page order — with eight recitals and nine subsections — aimed at making government websites and services easier to read and access in recognition of the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act later this week. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.

MARYLAND SEES COVID RISE: Maryland is seeing the biggest spike in Covid levels in its wastewater — or sewage — since early January, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There were “very high” levels of viral activity, nearly double the national levels, measured in the state’s wastewater through last week. Angela Roberts/The Baltimore Sun.

TO ANGELA ALSOBROOKS, KAMALA HARRIS’S GIRLFRIEND, MENTOR: When Democratic Party leaders meet in Chicago next month, they are expected to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s presidential nominee. But for U.S. Senate candidate Angela Alsobrooks, Harris is a friend and mentor. She first met Harris 14 years ago, when Harris was San Francisco’s district attorney and Alsobrooks was running for the same position in Prince George’s County. Rachel Baye/WYPR-FM.

WHO IN MONTGOMERY SUPPORTED HARRIS FOR PRES? Following President Joe Biden’s announcement Sunday that he would no longer seek the Democratic Party’s nomination for a second term as president, several Montgomery County officials and organizations have followed Biden and the party’s lead and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the job, starting with U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin of Takoma Park. Who are the others? Ginny Bixby/MoCo 360.

OPINION: GIVE UP POWER OR STAY TOO LONG: It’s become somewhat of a tradition in Maryland politics. After long years of public service, at a certain age, in their own time, politicians open the door to a younger generation. ….The retirement of Maryland’s political leaders stands in stark contrast to President Joe Biden’s stubborn hold on power. He presented it as a lofty fight for democracy, but it is ultimately a fight to retain power against the force that will ultimately kill us all: time. Len Lazarick of MarylandReporter/Business Monthly.

MARYLAND CONGRESSMEN DIFFER OVER NETANYAHU VISIT: Maryland Democratic Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen usually agree and often work together. But they have diverged over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s scheduled address to Congress on Wednesday. Josh Kurtz and Elijah Pittman/Maryland Matters.

PG SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER WORKING IN SCHOOLS IN MISSOURI: Some parents and voters in Prince George’s County are outraged after learning that a school board member has spent the entire year working for a school system in Ferguson, Missouri, while maintaining an elected position in Maryland. While state law says school board members are required to live in the district they represent, a court could look at the definition of home differently. John Domen/WTOP-FM.

MO CO-RAAD DOES NOT PROPOSE TO PLACE 2 QUESTIONS ON THE VOTE: The Montgomery County Council voted Tuesday to leave two proposed questions off the November ballot that would have asked voters to decide whether to amend the county charter. They concerned the number of council members who must approve a tax increase and the manner in which certain government positions are appointed. Ginny Bixby/MoCo 360.

B’MORE COUNCIL REJECTS OPPORTUNITY TO REDUCE VOTING CONTEST: Baltimore City Council members on Monday squandered their last chance to neutralize a ballot initiative that could cut their membership by nearly half, put six of them out of jobs and upend politics at City Hall. Instead of posing their own counter-question, the 15 council members are betting that the city’s voters will side with them and reject the ballot measure in November. That could be a risky gamble. Adam Willis and Lee O. Sanderlin/The Baltimore Banner.

COMMENT: ‘WILLING TESTIMONY’ FORCED BIDEN TO RESIGN: The withdrawal of President Joe Biden from the presidential race and the rise of Donald Trump underscore the importance of what we in the field of rhetorical studies call “contradictory testimony.” Some call contradictory testimony the single most important key to sustained persuasion. It describes when a source speaks in favor of a person or issue they are thought to oppose—or in opposition to a person or issue they are thought to support. Richard Vatz/The Baltimore Sun.