"What does a Comptroller do?"That is the question on the minds of many voters going to the polls to vote. The Comptroller provides an important role in the government of Maryland. According to the Comptroller of Maryland's website, the primary function of the Comptroller is to be the:
Chief financial officer for Maryland
Collector of revenue for state programs
Provider of information technology services for most state agencies
Regulator of the state's motor fuel industries
Member of many state boards and commissions, such as the:
Board of Revenue Estimates
Board of Public Works
Board of Trustees of the State Retirement and Pension System
There are two candidates for the office of Maryland Comptroller.
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Democratic Candidate
Brooke Lierman
Website: brookelierman.com
Twitter: @BrookeELierman
Bio: Brooke Lierman is a disability and civil rights attorney, and since 2015, she has been a Member of the House of Delegates in the Maryland General Assembly. During Lierman's tenure, she has held a leadership role on the Environment and Transportation Committee in 2019, been a Member of the Appropriations Committee for five years, and currently sits on the Joint Committee on Ending Homelessness and the Oversight Committee on Pensions. She has also founded and co-chairs the Maryland Transit Caucus.
Her platform, as stated on her campaign website, says that:
She will modernize the Comptroller’s office and provide citizens with more transparent and accountable processes to understand how state funds are collected, spent and invested. She will promote policies and initiatives that close the racial wealth gap and increase upward mobility while using the Comptroller’s many field offices as hubs for resources in partnership with nonprofits to help working families and entrepreneurs thrive. Finally, Brooke will ensure our pension investments are made by managers who reflect the state’s diversity and our spending reflects Maryland’s progressive values
She wants to ensure that businesses start here and stay here. She will ensure small and family-owned businesses can access the tools and capital they need to innovate and grow. She will push for investment in our workforce and public infrastructure, including education, transit, and broadband, to ensure a capable workforce can access jobs across the state.
She understands the importance of inclusive community development and as Comptroller, she will encourage investment in the tools, systems and infrastructure that promote healthy, safe and well-educated communities, cultivate a strong workforce and reduce reliance on public services. Brooke will ensure the Comptroller’s policies address long-standing, systemic disinvestment in communities of color to equalize access to opportunity and success.
Endorsements:
Lierman has a large list of endorsements, which can be read in full on her campaign site. Her endorsers are a collection of current and former policymakers, unions, newspapers, and non-profits from across the state, such as:
Maryland House Speaker Adrienne Jones
Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson
Congressman Steny Hoyer
Congressman Jamie Raskin
Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski
Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks
Montgomery County Councilmember Will Jawando
Former Senator Barbara Mikulski
Prince George’s Councilmember Deni Taveras
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME_
Communications Workers of America (CWA)
Professional Fire Fighters of Maryland
Emily's List
Baltimore Sun
AFRO American newspapers
Republican Candidate
Barry Glassman
Website: barryglassman.com
Twitter: @HarfordExec
Bio
Barry Glassman started his political career in 1990 in the Harford County Council, representing the northern district and serving as Council vice-president in 1995. In 1999, he won a seat in the Maryland General Assembly in the Maryland House of Delegates, where he served until 2008 when he was appointed to the Maryland Senate to succeed state Senator J. Robert Hooper. He served in the Maryland Senate until 2014, when he decided not to run for reelection but to run to be Harford County Executive. Glassman won in the general election with 74% of the vote, and in his re-election campaign, he won with 67% of the vote.
Glassman has stated that:
He wants to take Harford County's fiscal efficiency and customer service model to the State. He states that he has held the line on not implementing any new taxes and launched digital platforms to improve customer service.
Glassman believes that he has demonstrated that it is possible to fund education and public safety and create jobs through innovation and good government.
He would support Governor Hogan’s sensible plan to widen portions of the Beltway and Interstate 270 (Source: Washington Post)
He would take a responsible approach to another key part of the comptroller’s job: helping oversee the state’s pension fund, worth roughly $68 billion at the start of this year. In that capacity, he says he would focus not on politics but on investment returns that ensure benefits for tens of thousands of retired teachers, state police, judges and others.(Source: Washington Post)
Endorsements:
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan
Maryland Farm Bureau
Maryland State Fraternal Order of Police
Washington Post
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