“More than 70 Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday sent a letter to Gov. Larry Hogan calling on him to release $1.6 million in funding they set aside through legislation for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra,” writes Luke Broadwater in Tuesday’s (6/5) Baltimore Sun. “In all, 18 senators and 54 delegates signed the letter that partially blamed Hogan’s reluctance to release the funds for the symphony’s abrupt cancellation of its summer concert series and its move to cut musicians’ pay and vacation time. ‘It is our understanding that these decisions were made, in part, because of uncertainty whether you would release funding for the upcoming fiscal year,’ the letter states. ‘We are concerned that these actions may have an irreversible impact on the quality of this world-class orchestra and will unfairly impact the BSO musicians and their families.’ The Maryland General Assembly this year passed a bill … that would award the orchestra an additional $3.2 million in state funding for the next two fiscal years amid its fiscal difficulties…. The Hogan administration has been reluctant to release the first year of the money fenced off in the legislation, citing a looming state fiscal deficit.”
Posted June 7, 2019
