O’Malley’s agenda faces rocky road ahead

Administration, Democrats remain confident and expect a lot of work to get done in session’s waning days

The Senate on Thursday diluted an O’Malley-backed proposal to reduce carbon emissions amid fears that the aggressive regulations could cause further energy price spikes and the loss of jobs. The bill aims to combat global warming by slashing pollution 20 percent by 2025 and 90 percent by 2050, which some critics have said is unreasonable and cost-prohibitive.

Senators also stripped the Maryland Department of the Environment’s authority to impose new regulations without legislative approval.

A number of other administration bills, including several energy conservation measures and a proposal to divest state pension assets from Iran, remained stuck in committee as of Thursday.

And several of O’Malley’s budget priorities, including funding for stem cell research, remain up in the air. The Senate slashed all but $5 million from the initial allocation of $23 million, while the House kept $15 million. Both chambers also agreed to spread the $50 million Chesapeake Bay Trust Fund over two years.

Critics said it reflects poorly on O’Malley (D) that the fate of some of his top priorities are iffy this late in the session.

‘‘Members of the House and Senate, I think in their minds, feel that they have given at the office during the special session, put themselves out on a limb and are hearing from their constituents,” said House Minority Whip Christopher B. Shank (R-Dist. 2B) of Hagerstown. ‘‘They’re looking at Governor O’Malley’s dismal poll numbers and concluding that taking additional risks for this governor could be hazardous to their political health.”

Several State House insiders have been surprised at the lack of movement on O’Malley’s initiatives and questioned whether he’s run up against a more defiant legislature.

‘‘After four years of Ehrlich, the Democratic leadership really got a chance to flex its muscles, and the power that they assumed during the Ehrlich years has flowed back to the second floor, maybe just not all of it,” former Republican Delegate Donald E. Murphy said of former Republican Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. ‘‘They learned to say no during the four years of Ehrlich, and it stuck in their vocabulary.”

Even so, the administration appears unconcerned with the pace of action and expects much work to get accomplished in the remaining two weeks.

‘‘I think we’re exactly where we expected to be,” O’Malley spokesman Rick Abbruzzese said. ‘‘Historically, crossover is a time when these bills start to move.”

Bills that aren’t received by the opposite chamber by Monday are referred to the respective Rules committees, complicating but not obstructing their passage.

A suite of administration bills that address the mortgage lending crisis have moved quickly in both chambers, Abbruzzese said.

But he acknowledged there have been hang-ups with energy legislation, proposals to strengthen the critical areas law, and bills that ease restrictions on development near military installations.

‘‘I don’t think there are obstacles that we can’t work around,” Abbruzzese said.

The face-off with black legislators on the DNA bill is a ‘‘hiccup,” he added.

During an appearance Wednesday morning on WTOP’s ‘‘Ask the Governor,” O’Malley called on the General Assembly to stay the course on his agenda, which will help Maryland weather the economic difficulties.

‘‘If we stick to our priorities, we’re going to come through this national downturn faster than other states,” he said.

Most lawmakers agree that it’s too early to judge, especially given the looming fiscal troubles and the enormity of some of O’Malley’s proposals.

‘‘Right now, we just have to manage our finances as best we can,” said Sen. Robert A. Zirkin (D-Dist. 11) of Owings Mills. ‘‘It’s not a reflection of the governor. We all agree on the priorities.”

After the whirlwind special session last November, some lawmakers were surprised that O’Malley submitted such an ambitious and widespread agenda.

The special session caused an extremely slow start to the beginning of the 90-day session, which has contributed to the logjam of legislation, said Del. Eric M. Bromwell (D-Dist. 8) of Perry Hall.

‘‘Compared to a special session, where an entire term’s worth of initiatives was passed, I think anything would appear to be moving slowly,” he said.

‘‘It’s a function not of the governor’s programs or his ability to lobby legislators, but the exhaustion and their reluctance to tackle really tough things,” said former Sen. Barbara A. Hoffman, who now works as a lobbyist.

Even Republicans expect most of the governor’s initiatives to motor forward in the coming days.

‘‘I think most of these programs are going to get through and whether they pass at 11:59 on Sine Die or sometimes before then doesn’t matter,” said Sen. E.J. Pipkin (R-Dist. 36) of Elkton.

House Speaker Michael E. Busch expects most, if not all, of O’Malley’s bills to pass, even if it doesn’t happen this year.

‘‘Some might get through, some might need a period of study,” he said. ‘‘But over the course of four years, the vast majority of his legislation is going to pass.”

Even though he’s a relative newcomer to the legislature, Del. Benjamin S. Barnes (D-Dist. 21) of Laurel expects a crush of action in the final days, and is confident that O’Malley’s bills will come through.

‘‘I don’t think with three weeks left in the session you can say legislation is bottled up. The way things work down here is we get 90 percent of our work done in the last two weeks,” he said. ‘‘Bills that endeavor to do the most often are moved last.”

The shaky economy has lawmakers more jittery than usual, and that has caused the committees to take extra time on some of the more costly proposals, said Sen. Robert J. Garagiola (D-Dist. 15) of Germantown.

‘‘Anything that has a high price tag is going to get double scrutiny,” Hoffman echoed.

Still, most observers expect O’Malley to score more victories than losses.

‘‘Bills can get through in a day or two, especially if it is the governor’s bills,” said Sean Dobson, executive director of Progressive Maryland. ‘‘The normal rules and procedures don’t apply to him.”

Staff Writer Sean R. Sedam contributed to this report.