The NAACP has named former DOJ civil‑rights chief Kristen Clarke as its general counsel to lead voting‑rights, gerrymandering and First Amendment litigation. The hire deepens the group’s courtroom team ahead of a high‑stakes election cycle.

The Maryland House advanced a bell‑to‑bell phone policy this week that would require districts to store students’ devices during the school day, setting up a clash with local leaders.

Maryland's top court ruled March 24 that climate suits by Baltimore, Annapolis and Anne Arundel County are preempted by federal law and fail under state tort doctrines.

Hagerstown officials are weighing multi‑year water and sewer rate increases to cover aging infrastructure and rising demand.

Baltimore sued xAI, alleging Grok flooded residents’ feeds with nonconsensual sexual deepfakes and seeking injunctions and the maximum statutory penalties.

Sanjay Rai will leave the Maryland Higher Education Commission this week; Deputy Elena Quiroz-Livanis will serve as interim while a search is launched. The move comes as the agency addresses recent scholarship problems.

A Maryland high‑court decision narrows public‑nuisance law and puts Baltimore’s jury victory against opioid distributors in legal doubt.

Maryland joined a 21‑state lawsuit arguing USDA rules that tie funding to anti‑DEI and immigration conditions could disrupt SNAP, WIC and other programs. The challenge was filed in federal court in Massachusetts.

Council President Zeke Cohen wants a 12-month moratorium on megawatt-scale data centers while the city studies grid, water and fiscal impacts.

Baltimore's public safety committee will consider bills to require police to record ICE encounters and to ban private immigration detention centers in the city.

A replica of the Christopher Columbus statue toppled and dumped into Baltimore’s Inner Harbor in 2020 has been installed inside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Italian American groups signed a loan to move the piece to the White House complex.

Dorchester County’s state’s attorney race closed with no candidates after the incumbent declined to run, leaving party committees to pick nominees for November. The empty ballot spot highlights a small office with a heavy caseload.

Top Democrats say pausing the gas tax would gut hundreds of millions in road and transit funding even as pump prices surge nearly 90¢ in a month. The split leaves lawmakers weighing short‑term relief against longer‑term budget harm.