Maryland

The state’s budget for fiscal year 2026 includes a new 3 percent taxation on information technology and data services. Officials said it aims to fill tax structure gaps as the market sees a shift from products to services.

With Maryland lawmakers scheduled to give final approval to a new tax on certain technology services, questions remain about how the state will implement and enforce the new policy.

The sales tax on data, information technology and software publishing is at the center of a potential tax reform plan, which, in addition to more than $2 billion in spending cuts, aims to fill a budget shortfall.

A report from the Office of Legislative Audits found issues with the Maryland Higher Education Commission's recordkeeping as well as cybersecurity, but those findings were redacted from the public version of the report.

The governor and lawmakers propose closing a state budget deficit in part by taxing large website and cloud computing providers. The state Senate minority leader questioned how the economy can grow if innovation is stifled.

The Maryland Energy Administration offered grants to 11 colleges and universities to install solar panels and draft strategies to incorporate renewable energy into academics and workforce preparation.

The state plans to use a $13.2 million grant from the federal government to standardize interagency crash data, improve its quality and make it easier to access. Funds may also be used to automate data sharing.

Councilmembers say data centers are coming with or without the city's involvement, and that the city badly needs the potential revenue stream the centers are expected to bring.

A proposed bill in the Maryland General Assembly seeks to create an analysis and report about the economic, environmental and energy consequences of data center development in the state.

The state’s new AI Enablement Strategy and AI Study Roadmap is intended to advance artificial intelligence through a five-part strategy that includes directing further studies on the technology, in critical domains.

The union representing state employees has demanded better conditions and higher staff counts for Gov. Wes Moore’s executive agencies — particularly the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services.

As part of Gov. Wes Moore’s $90 million climate pledge to cut emissions, school districts can receive grants for up to 85 percent of the incremental price of purchasing qualified electric school buses.

New funding for the state's Cyber Workforce Accelerator program aims to enhance cyber ranges and address talent gaps, with a special focus on reaching under-represented groups, including women and people of color.

Francesca Ioffreda has a long list of job experiences that include consulting and economic development. She will lead a team funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies — an effort her new employer expects other states to imitate.

Court access advocates and journalists laud the benefits of allowing the public to remotely view court records, saying it increases transparency and accommodates timely reporting on newsworthy events.

States are navigating an ever-growing number of emergencies, including unprecedented weather events, infrastructure failures and cybersecurity incidents. Response plans must stay agile.

A law passed this year requires the state police to create a model policy for other Maryland departments, a guideline that some advocates hope will further limit facial recognition’s use as a policing tool.

The Maryland Department of Information Technology is partnering with InnovateUS to offer free artificial intelligence training to state employees, joining a growing list of states to do so.