ROCKVILLE, MD (April 5, 2017) — The Maryland Public Policy Institute today praised Governor Larry Hogan for vetoing House Bill 978, which would for the first time force the Maryland State Board of Education to deemphasize student achievement and make it harder to measure schools’ effectiveness in Maryland.

“House Bill 978 is an affront to parents and children across Maryland,” said Christopher B. Summers, president and chief executive officer of the Institute. “It protects a ‘business-as-usual’ mentality in failing schools and offers no credible solutions to provide students in these schools the proper education they need and deserve. It is particularly troubling that supporters of this bill would insist on lowering standards in our schools while at the same time demanding hundreds of millions of dollars in new money from taxpayers.”  

Read Governor Hogan’s veto letter at: https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/MDGOV/2017/04/05/file_attachments/797511/VetoLetterHB978.pdf

Read a summary of House Bill 978 at: http://mgaleg.maryland.gov/webmga/frmMain.aspx?id=hb0978&stab=01&pid=billpage&tab=subject3&ys=2017RS

About the Maryland Public Policy Institute: Founded in 2001, the Maryland Public Policy Institute is a nonpartisan public policy research and education organization that focuses on state policy issues. The Institute’s mission is to formulate and promote public policies at all levels of government based on principles of free enterprise, limited government, and civil society.  Learn more at mdpolicy.org.

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