ANNAPOLIS—Senate President Mike Miller announced the full slate of committee assignments Tuesday, Dec. 16, finding places for the 11 new senators and shifting several of the incumbents.
The Democratic presiding officer determines the committee assignments for both Democrats and Republicans in the 47-member Senate. Miller had already announced any new chairs and vice chairs for the Senate’s standing committees to replace senators who are not returning.
House Speaker Michael Busch has promised to announce committee assignments before Christmas. He faces a more complicated task since he has 58 new members of the House of Delegates to assign, more than 40% of the 141-member House.
The committees must not only be balanced by party — in the Senate, 33 Democrats and 14 Republicans — but geography, gender and race are also considerations that come into play.
Of the 11 new senators, eight had served in the House of Delegates.
The Senate committee with the least change was the 13-member Budget and Taxation panel with only three new members for the largest committee. Both freshman senators added to the committee had served several terms on the House Appropriations Committee. But Republican Sen. Joseph Getty will soon need to be replaced on the budget committee since he has been named legislative and policy director for Gov.-elect Larry Hogan.
The Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee (EHE) had the most change with five newly elected senators joining the committee, including two Republicans new to the legislature. Both EHE and Judicial Proceedings (JPR) have four Republicans on their 11-member panels.
Here is the complete list as released by the President’s Office, with party, district number, and the counties each senator represents. Notes have been added where senators have moved from one committee to another.
Budget & Taxation Committee
-- Senator Edward J. Kasemeyer (D-12, Howard & Baltimore Counties) – Chair
-- Senator Richard S. Madaleno (D-18, Montgomery County) – New Vice-Chair
-- Senator Ulysses Currie (D-25, Prince George’s County)
-- Senator James “Ed” DeGrange (D-32, Anne Arundel County)
-- Senator-Elect Adelaide C. Eckardt (R-37, Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot, and Wicomico Counties) (Served on House Appropriations.)
-- Senator George Edwards (R-1, Garrett, Allegany, and Washington Counties)
-- Senator Bill Ferguson (D-46, Baltimore City) (Move from EHE)
-- Senator Joseph Getty (R-5, Carroll County) (To be replaced after he becomes legislative and policy director for Hogan.)
-- Senator-Elect Guy J. Guzzone (D-13, Howard County) (Miller had publicly promised Del. Guzzone, a House Appropriations subcommittee chair, a seat on the committee over a year ago to replace the retiring Sen. Jim Robey of Howard County.)
-- Senator Nancy J. King (D-39, Montgomery County)
-- Senator Roger Manno (D-19, Montgomery County)
-- Senator Nathaniel McFadden (D-45, Baltimore City) (Had been vice-chair)
-- Senator Douglas J. J. Peters (D-23, Prince George’s County)
Education, Health, & Environmental Affairs Committee
-- Senator Joan Carter Conway (D-43, Baltimore City) – Chair
-- Senator Paul G. Pinsky (D-22, Prince George’s County) – New Vice-Chair
-- Senator-Elect Gail Bates (R-9, Howard & Carroll Counties)
-- Senator-Elect Cheryl C. Kagan (D-17, Montgomery County)
-- Senator Karen S. Montgomery (D-14, Montgomery County)
-- Senator-Elect Shirley Nathan-Pulliam (D-44, Baltimore County & Baltimore City)
-- Senator Jim Rosapepe (D-21, Prince George’s & Anne Arundel Counties)
-- Senator-Elect Johnny Ray Salling (R-6, Baltimore County)
-- Senator Bryan Simonaire (R-31, Anne Arundel County)
-- Senator-Elect Steve Waugh (R-29, St. Mary’s & Calvert Counties)
-- Senator Ronald N. Young (D-3, Frederick County)
Finance Committee
-- Senator Thomas “Mac” Middleton (D-28, Charles County) – Chair
-- Senator John C. Astle (D-30, Anne Arundel County) – Vice-Chair
-- Senator Joanne C. Benson (D-24, Prince George’s County) (Moved from EHE)
-- Senator Brian J. Feldman (D-15, Montgomery County)
-- Senator Stephen S. Hershey, Jr. (R-36, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Cecil, and Caroline Counties) (Moved from JPR)
-- Senator J.B. Jennings (R-7, Baltimore & Harford Counties) (Moved from EHE and elected Senate minority leader.)
-- Senator Delores Kelley (D-10, Baltimore County)
-- Senator Kathy Klausmeier (D-8, Baltimore County)
-- Senator James N. Mathias (D-38, Somerset, Wicomico, & Worcester Counties)
-- Senator Catherine Pugh (D-40, Baltimore City) (New majority leader)
-- Senator Edward R. Reilly (R-33, Anne Arundel County) (Moved from EHE)
Judicial Proceedings Committee
-- Senator Bobby Zirkin (D-11, Baltimore County) – New Chair
-- Senator Lisa Gladden (D-41, Baltimore City) – Vice-Chair
-- Senator Jim Brochin (D-42, Baltimore County)
-- Senator-Elect Bob Cassilly (R-34, Harford County) (Lawyer)
-- Senator-Elect Michael J. Hough (R-4, Frederick & Carroll Counties) (Served on House Judiciary Committee (JUD))
-- Senator C. Anthony Muse (D-26, Prince George’s County)
-- Senator-Elect Wayne Norman (R-35, Harford & Cecil Counties) (Lawyer)
-- Senator Victor R. Ramirez (D-47, Prince George’s County) (Lawyer, moved from Finance)
-- Senator Jamin “Jamie” Raskin (D-20, Montgomery County)
-- Senator Christopher Shank (R-2, Washington County)
-- Senator-Elect Susan C. Lee (D-16, Montgomery County) (Lawyer, served on JUD)