Supreme Court tackles redistricting again — the Maryland implications

The U.S. Supreme Court has now agreed to hear a much-watched Wisconsin case, Gill v. Whitford, inviting it to reconsider its position that the Constitution does not create a judicial remedy for partisan gerrymandering. Should the Court uphold the challenge to Wisconsin districts, the implications for Maryland would be immediate and dramatic, since Maryland’s gerrymander is more extreme than Wisconsin’s and there is good evidence on the record (thanks in part to recent depositions from top officials) that its motivations were political. I joined Bryan Nehmen on WBAL yesterday to discuss how this affects the Maryland debate.

I also wrote a piece for Cato on the national implications, cautioning that the euphoria in some circles about an impending change in the Supreme Court’s jurisprudence is at best premature. The Justices by a 5-4 margin stayed the lower court order from Wisconsin, which hints, at least, that Justice Anthony Kennedy might not be persuaded by the advocates hoping to get him to open wide the door he left open in his 2004 concurrence in Vieth v. Jubelirer.

A couple of additional relevant Maryland links from before the decision: Nancy Soreng and Jennifer Bevan-Dangel in the Washington Post (“Maryland shouldn’t wait for other states to start redistricting”); Karen Hobert Flynn, The Hill;
Kojo Nnamdi show last month with Ashley Oleson (MRRC colleague, but no relation) and Del. Kirill Reznik (D-Montgomery County); Yael Grauer/Yes! (“Has Arizona Found a Solution to Gerrymandering?”, discussing Maryland reform efforts).

Putting occupational licensing on the Maryland reform agenda

Last year the Washington Post rightly applauded Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s signing of a bill reducing licensing requirements for personnel at “blowout” hair salons as “a modest but genuine step toward reform of occupational licensing rules that too often stand in the way of career progress for working Americans, and not only in Maryland.” The Obama White House, think tanks, and many economists agree that needless licensing rules exclude qualified newcomers from desirable jobs and often harm consumers as well by restricting choice and driving up the cost of services. (More here.)

Where should Maryland reformers turn next? In 2012 the Institute for Justice published a nationwide comparison that ranked Maryland as 14th most burdensome of the fifty-states-plus-DC in its licensing rules. Of the 42 occupations Maryland requires a license to practice, 16 require such a license in 10 or fewer other states, suggesting that much of the country gets along quite well without such rules. They include tree trimmer (only 6 other states choose to license), social and human service assistant, and a variety of residential construction trades including window repair, floor sanding, and carpentry. These jobs can offer a livelihood and a path for upward advancement for a wide range of workers, including some who lack degrees or are re-entering the workforce after absence, who lack the resources or patience to surmount the licensing barrier.

Equally problematic, even when other states license a given occupation, Maryland often loads onto the entrant heavier education and experience requirements. It ranks 10th of 51 in that category of burden, typically requiring more than a year of preparation before conferring a right to practice. While 39 states require a license before practicing massage therapy, for example, Maryland demands nearly a year of preparation, almost three times as long as neighboring Virginia, Delaware, or Pennsylvania.

It’s a target-rich environment — although many of the burdensome rules, alas, will be closely defended by incumbent practitioners who do not like the idea of easier access to their occupations.

Redistricting: the six-state compact idea doesn’t cut it

On Tuesday the Baltimore Sun ran any op-ed that I co-authored with Judge Alexander Williams, Jr., with whom I serve as co-chairs of the Maryland Redistricting Reform Commission:

By an overwhelming majority, Marylanders support the idea of having an independent commission rather than incumbent lawmakers draw district lines for Maryland elections. The margin was 73 to 19 percent in a February Goucher Poll, with support running roughly the same among registered Democrats, Republicans and independents.

Yet a bill passed by the legislature this session would instead have kicked the issue of redistricting reform down the road unless five other nearby states all agree to pass similar bills — something no one expects to happen.

As co-chairs of the Maryland Redistricting Reform Commission, which Gov. Larry Hogan established in 2015 to devise a better system for drawing district lines, we support Governor Hogan’s May 8 veto of that bill. The proposal for a “Mid-Atlantic Regional Compact” is a frivolous distraction in place of a willingness to tackle reform seriously….

Read the full piece here.