Officials Provide Legislative Update To OC Leaders

OCEAN CITY -- Lower Shore lawmakers this week briefed resort business leaders on a variety of issues that came out of the 2013 General Assembly session, including several that will likely impact the small business climate and the summer season.

Senator Jim Mathias and Delegates Norm Conway and Mike McDermott, along with county and municipal elected officials on Wednesday, provided the Ocean City Economic Development Committee (EDC) with a broad overview of the issues of local importance to emerge from the 2013 General Assembly session from the state budget to the gas tax and from offshore wind to the repeal of the death penalty. A recurring theme throughout the meeting was the state’s economy and the impact of certain decisions and votes on the local business climate.

Depending on the source, the news was either positive or tempered with concerns of recurring infringements on private sector business, increased taxes and regulations, and a drain on the local economy. Mathias said when he first took state office in 2006, the picture was much gloomier than it is now.
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