Matthew Santoni, The Examiner
2007-07-28 07:00:00.0
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Harford County -

Three state officials from Harford County have been appointed to a joint committee in Annapolis designed to deal with Maryland’s military growth.

Del. Mary-Dulaney James, D-District 34, Del. Donna Stifler, R-District 35, and Sen. Nancy Jacobs, R-District 34, were among the six delegates and six state senators to be appointed to the Joint Committee on Base Realignment and Closure.

The other nine members represent other counties believed to be affected most by BRAC, which is expected to bring between 45,000 and 60,000 new jobs surrounding Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County and Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford. Anne Arundel is the only other county with three representatives on the committee.

The committee will be responsible for providing “legislative oversight” for the state’s BRAC preparations and reviewing BRAC-related bills as they pass through the General Assembly. The committee will also help fast-track the approval of transportation, water and sewer projects; affordable housing options for new workers; and school construction projects.

“I want to keep things as local as possible,” said Stifler, who completed her first session of the General Assembly this year. “There’s no need to hire out-of-state contractors for any of this [planning], when Maryland has such a wealth of businesses.”

Del. David Rudolph, a Cecil County Democrat, will be the House chairman of the committee, and Sen. Roy Dyson, a Democrat representing parts of Calvert, Charles and St. Mary’s County, will be its Senate chairman.

msantoni@baltimoreexaminer.com