Berlin will be one of two sites on the Eastern Shore for a town hall debate about the proposed increase of the bay bridge toll fee to $8.
The meeting will take place at 5:30 p.m. on July 14, at Stephen Decatur Middle School at 9815 Seahawk Road in Berlin. This will be the 10th hearing that officials from the Maryland Transportation Authority have scheduled for citizens to have their say about the proposed increase on toll roads, which are funded and managed solely by the authority without finances from the state coffers.
Along with other rate increases proposed by the authority for state toll roads, the toll for the William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge, as it is formally named, would double from the current $2.50 to $5 starting in October and then raise to $8 in 2013.
Until the announcement by the group on June 22, the only other scheduled meeting on the Eastern Shore was held on June 15 at Kent Island High School in Stevensville — more than two hours away from Ocean City. All of the other meetings were held in Maryland suburbs.
Because the Bay Bridge is an economic lifeline that brings traffic to the Eastern Shore, and specifically Ocean City, Sen. Jim Mathias (D-38) and Delegate Norm Conway (D-38) asked the Transportation Authority to hold a hearing in the Ocean City area for Lower Shore residents concerned about the increase.
Kelly Melhem, spokeswoman for the authority, said the hearings being attended across the state by board members of the authority are the most extensive in the history of the agency because of the importance of the toll issue.
Dwindling budgets have forced state legislators to suspend a salary bonus for sheriffs in recent years, but Sheriff Ken Stolle has found a way to still earn an additional $11,767 annually. 
With Maryland's presidential primary only nine months off, Howard County Democrats are organizing at basic levels, contacting newly registered Democrats, building their base of core neighborhood organizers and volunteers, secure in knowing they have President Barack Obama as their certain candidate. 
The earliest 
Two of Virginia’s political heavyweights strolled the streets of Crozet on Saturday as they took part in the town’s annual 
Granted, he’s talking about the 2016 race, not next year’s, and granted, Cillizza and others have ulterior motives for boosting O’Malley’s White House candidacy at this moment. Nevertheless, we Marylanders are doomed. Putting O’Malley on the presidential short list is like pouring jet fuel on a bonfire. And O’Malley’s burning ambition hardly needs additional stoking. 
U.S. Rep. Thaddeus McCotter, a five-term congressman with little name recognition but plenty of pizazz, will become the latest Republican to enter the 
Herman Cain's campaign for the 
As the money from the two-year federal stimulus program dries up, many Maryland companies have received solid shots-in-the-arm from their multimillion-dollar contracts or awards, say executives with those businesses. 
Travelers taking the car somewhere this holiday weekend will find gas prices in Virginia and Maryland at or below the national average. 
Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, said President Barack Obama is catering to “special interest groups that live off the federal government” instead of doing his job.
The Newport News Democrat said in March that he was considering making the bid for his party's Senate nomination because the House, where he has served for almost two decades, has become so divisive. 
I don’t know whether Michele Bachmann will make a good president or not. But let’s face it: none of us ever really know the answer to that question until a candidate is planted firmly in the Oval Office. 
Forty-nine members of the U.S. House of Representatives--including the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, the chairman of the Republican Policy Committee and two presidential candidates--are pointing to evidence they say is "contradictory" to Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan's confirmation testimony and calling for the House Judiciary Committee to investigate the matter. 
Any time spent at the gym rather than on your couch munching on cheese fries is time well spent, but try convincing your brain of that when confronted with the choice of whether to spend a chunk of free time at the gym or the drive-thru. The key is to somehow convince yourself to actually look forward to working out rather than see the activity as a prison sentence. 
The Fourth of July will be filled with family fun in Ocean City, Maryland with two great places to celebrate the holiday, both presenting free concerts beginning at 8 p.m. and fireworks to follow. 
Meanwhile, on the south end of town, you can head to Ocean City’s famous Boardwalk with its bright lights, assortment of food, family fun and more fantastic fireworks. Bring your beach chair or blanket and claim a spot on the beach at North Division Street for a free concert at 8 p.m. with The United States Army Band Downrange. Fireworks will also fill the sky over the ocean beginning at 9:30 p.m. 
The 78th Army Band is the musical ambassador for the 99th RSC, United States Army Reserve. Commander of the 99th RSC is MG William D R Waff and the Command Sergeant Major is Richard Castelveter. The band is under the direct command of the 99th RSC HHC and its commander MAJ Kevin Branch. 
The 78th Army Band performs at numerous events, including military ceremonies, public community concerts, public parades, and school performances. In April 1998, the band was the premier band for many events in Washington, D.C., celebrating the 90th Birthday of the United States Army Reserve. Again, in 2008, the band was the vanguard band in celebrating the Army Reserve’s 100th Anniversary, leading the 2008 national Memorial Day parade in Washington DC. 
Every 4th of July, dignitaries and direct descendants of the signers of the Declaration of Independence — referred to as Junior Members of The Society of the Descendants of the Declaration of Independence — are invited to be bell-tappers. 
Berlin could have the opportunity to match its German namesake this fall if Worcester County matches the town’s move to approve a day of beer sales during an Oktoberfest event. 
Berlin’s Economic and Community Development Director Michael Day presented the plan and placed great importance on the vote because the town had never approved such a motion to sell beer downtown before. 
Brice R. Phillips, the patriarch of a Maryland seafood empire that began 55 years ago with a simple crab shack in, died Friday at his home in the seaside resort town. 
Exxon Mobil Corp. has been ordered to pay more than $1.5 billion in damages to 160 families and businesses affected by a 2006 gasoline leak in Maryland. 
Alpha Consumer
The Department of Transportation's (DelDOT) Maintenance crews will close Edwardsville Road between Courtland Dill Road and Spectrum Farms Road near Harrington for the replacement of a crossroad pipe.