By Steve Crane | Editor-in-chief
“That’s my biggest concern. Where are we going to be sending these individuals where they are actually going to be seen and provided with the care that they need in that moment? Especially when we see someone with a chronic disease diagnosed.” - Leidi Garcia, director of health and human services at We Are CASA, about the potential loss of Medicaid coverage for thousands of immigrants in the state under H.R. 1.
New laws, nuclear power and a nudge from state officials to get your car registered in Maryland if you haven’t already, all part of a busy Thursday.
After backing out of a deal to build a data center at Calvert Cliffs, Amazon has signed a 20-year deal to buy power generated by the nuclear power plant. Constellation Energy says the deal is the financial assurance it needs to relicense Calvert Cliffs for another 20 years, as Christine Condon reports.
Hundreds of new laws took effect at 12:01 a.m. today, covering everything from abortion to youth sentencing to shopping. William J. Ford and Danielle J. Brown have a roundup. Bryan P. Sears has a breakout on one overlooked law, that aims to get thousands of Maryland residents who registered their cars in Virginia to switch their registration, or else. And Danielle has another Oct. 1-related story, this one from the feds, on provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that could cause thousands of immigrants in Maryland to lose healthcare coverage.
Happy federal fiscal new year! Those stories and headlines from the week are below to help ease you into October. Enjoy!
A file photo of the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant Units 1 and 2, located near Lusby. (Photo by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.)
By Christine Condon
Constellation, the owner of Maryland’s Calvert Cliffs nuclear plant, said Wednesday it plans to move forward with massive upgrades at the facility after signing a 20-year power purchase deal with data center operator Amazon.
While the financial specifics of the deal remain confidential, Constellation officials said that because of the funding pledge from Amazon, the company now plans to spend $3 billion on “state-of-the-art improvements” for the facility, located in Southern Maryland’s Lusby. The agreement with Amazon will also “help provide Constellation with the revenue certainty to relicense the plant for another 20 years,” according to a company news release. Licenses for the two reactors expire in 2034 and 2036, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Beginning between 2030 and 2032, the plant will be able to provide another 190 megawatts of energy for the grid, enough to power about 147,000 American homes. Amazon will purchase 600 megawatts of what will be the plant’s 1,980 megawatt output. Just two months ago, Amazon Web Services dropped plans for a hyperscale data center at Calvert Cliffs site. The power it’s purchasimg will go toward Amazon facilities elsewhere.
Members of CASA rally in Annapolis in 2023 in favor of a bill that would expand healthcare for undocumented immigrants. Medicaid coverage for thousands of immigrants will go away after Oct. 1 under provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. (Photo by Bryan P. Sears/Maryland Matters)
By Danielle J. Brown
Treatments for cancer, diabetes and other conditions could be disrupted for up to 4,500 Maryland residents who will no longer qualify for Medicaid under a federal rule that takes effect Thursday that will disqualify people for Medicaid based on immigration status.
It's just one of the provisions that kick in Thursday under the federal “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” including a change to the way states are charged for operation of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the food assistance program known as SNAP. That change could end up costing Maryland up to $57 million.
The changes under H.R.1 have been phased in since the budget reconciliation bill was passed by Congress in July 2025, and more will come in 2027. One of the biggest current changes will bar certain noncitizen immigrants from federal assistance programs. Advocates estimate that as many as 4,500 Maryland residents face the loss of Medicaid under H.R.1.
Maryland residents with vehicles registered in other states will have 60 days to register in Maryland or face fines and other penalties. Notices are expected to go out later this month. (File photo by Bruce DePuyt/Maryland Matters)
By Bryan P. Sears
State officials say they are ready to crack down on Maryland residents who register their vehicles in other states.
Under a law that took effect Thursday, Marylanders who register their cars in other states will have 60 days to register them in Maryland. Those who do not could face fines and other penalties, but Maryland Motor Vehicle Administrator Chrissy Nizer said her agency hopes most will make use of the grace period.
The number of vehicles registered in Virginia to Maryland drivers is a growing problem. In November 2023, more than 101,000 vehicles registered in Virginia were associated with Maryland addresses. That number jumped to more than 111,000 by the following June, according to an analysis presented to lawmakers in January. They were involved in thousands of crashes in the state and owe nearly $235 million in unpaid tolls and fees.
IN OTHER NEWS
Hundreds of new laws: The more than 370 bills that became law Thursday are the usual grab bag of serious and silly, of technical tweaks, of answers to sweeping national issues and personal responses to situations that took young lives in Maryland.
Feds indict 10 on voting charges: A federal grand jury indicted 10 noncitizens for unlawfully voting in Minnesota, the Justice Department said Wednesday, highlighting President Donald Trump's effort to keep election security a top issue before the elections.
Another Pennsylvania measles death: A fifth measles-related death was reported in Pennsylvania, one of the nation's hot spots for outbreaks of the virus with 943 cases reported this year. Maryland has confirmed 51 cases so far this year, but no deaths.
MATTERS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED
Housing costs drive poverty: Maryland is one of 10 states where high housing costs contribute the most to the state’s poverty level, according to a new report, that attributes as much as 21% of Maryland's poverty to its above-average housing costs.
Paying attention to attendance: Maryland school officials Tuesday celebrated a sharp drop in chronic absenteeism since the pandemic, despite uneven results across school districts and not reaching their goal of cutting post-pandemic rates in half.
Blueprint defenders: They acknowledged the looming budget shortfall, and said there have been challenges implementing the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, but the main theme of a meeting on the state's sweeping education reform plan was plain: Don't cut it.
Thanks for reading Maryland Matters Memo. Did you know our weekend digest is also free? Sign up here. And if you enjoyed today’s edition, please forward to a friend. Increasing our readership helps us cover more news.