O'Malley pledges $1 billion to build schools, echoing '06 race against Ehrlich
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By John Wagner
Washington Post Staff WriterThursday, July 8, 2010
Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley pledged Wednesday to spend an additional $1 billion on public school construction if elected to a second term, returning to an issue he raised early in his 2006 campaign against then-Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.
"We have made big investments, even in the toughest of times . . . but our work is far from over," said O'Malley (D), standing outside the same elementary school in Annapolis where he promised four years ago to spend significantly more on school construction than had Ehrlich (R).
Since O'Malley took office in 2007, the legislature has approved almost $1.3 billion in state spending on school construction, about $460 million more than it did under Ehrlich, who is trying to win the job back from O'Malley this fall.
Although O'Malley's new plan could result in less spending during a second term than during his first, he pledged to continue to meet a target of at least $250 million a year set in 2004 by a high-profile state commission.
O'Malley also offered several ideas to make schools more energy-efficient and less costly, including relying more on standardized designs.
After the event, Ehrlich spokesman Andy Barth knocked the Democratic incumbent for "once more promising to spend money he doesn't have and would have to borrow." Barth
Since O'Malley took office in 2007, the legislature has approved almost $1.3 billion in state spending on school construction, about $460 million more than it did under Ehrlich, who is trying to win the job back from O'Malley this fall.
Although O'Malley's new plan could result in less spending during a second term than during his first, he pledged to continue to meet a target of at least $250 million a year set in 2004 by a high-profile state commission.
O'Malley also offered several ideas to make schools more energy-efficient and less costly, including relying more on standardized designs.
After the event, Ehrlich spokesman Andy Barth knocked the Democratic incumbent for "once more promising to spend money he doesn't have and would have to borrow." Barth