First Click -- Maryland

Your Daily Download of the State's Top Political News and Analysis

Monday, Sept. 21, 2009:

Prince George's Layoff Announcement Expected Today
Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) is expected to announce budget cuts today to close a $22 million drop in state funding. Johnson has warned of possible layoffs, and county employees have been on edge for more than a week following a hastily called meeting in which Johnson and county council members discussed layoffs without union representation for county employees. Check back here later today for the news. The cuts may foreshadow how counties across Maryland will grapple with $200 million in cuts approved last month by Gov. Martin O'Malley and the state's Board of Public Works.

She's Out, She's In - Democratic Nomination Turmoil in Annapolis
The buzz in the state capital this morning has nothing to do with the governor, or state politics, but the local mayor's race.
If you checked out over the weekend: Friday night a spokeswoman for Zina C. Pierre, the first black woman to win the Democratic nomination for Annapolis, withdrew from the race after a local blogger broke news that she faced a series of financial and legal troubles, including a Bowie home in foreclosure and unpaid state taxes.
A day later, a new campaign spokeswoman said Pierre was back in the race and suggested she'd never really withdrawn.
The turn of events has the capital buzzing about whether Pierre has the full support of the city's Democratic establishment - and whether she will be able to remain in the race. The Baltimore Sun quotes Nick Berry, chair of the Annapolis Democratic Central Committee, saying the city's Democrats will continue to support Pierre.
But House Speaker Michael E. Busch tells The Sun he's "sympathetic but concerned" about the situation.
Annapolis blogs are atwitter about whether Busch and other heavy hitters in the party have or will pull strings in the race:

California Company Fires Back At Maryland Over Debt Collection
Last week, Maryland's Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation said it ordered Encore Capital Group and a group of unlicensed San Diego companies to stop trying to collect on "junk debt" bought from credit card companies and other lenders. In some cases state residents' debt was decades old, state officials said.
Encore President J. Brandon Black tells the San Diego Union Tribune today that the company is licensed in Maryland, well-aware of its statute of limitations on old debt and has been operating legally in the state.

Maryland, California Expected to Announce Joint Effort on Stem Cells
Maryland and California officials are expected to enter into a formal agreement in Baltimore this week to facilitate joint projects and funding on stem-cell research, writes The Daily Record's Danielle Ulman.
Gov. Martin O'Malley will address the convention today. He will receive an award from the Genetics Policy Institute, which orchestrates the annual World Stem Cell Summit, the largest such gathering annually in the country.

And, Briefly...