HARFORD SCHOOLS AMONG FIRST TO GO TO TRIAL AGAINST SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES: A suit by Harford County’s Board of Education will be among the first to go to trial against social media companies when hundreds of cases of children being harmed begin rolling out as expected next year. School systems have claimed that they’re owed as much as tens and hundreds of millions of dollars in compensatory damages and even more in abatement costs for years of handling the harm caused by such companies. Harford Schools was chosen as one of six “bellwether” cases that will test the claims made in the multi-district litigation. Jean Marbella/The Baltimore Sun.

ELECTRIC BILLS TO RISE UP TO 5% BEGINNING NEXT SUMMER: Consumers in a 13-state region that includes Maryland could see their electric bills rise another 1.5% to 5% starting in the summer of 2026, after a key electricity auction cleared at its maximum price Tuesday. PJM Interconnection, the regional electric grid operator serving Maryland, uses the competitive auction process to procure electric capacity from generators. The auction’s clearing price generally trickles down to consumers, as one segment of their utility bill. Christine Condon/Maryland Matters.

BGE RAISED RATES TO COVER $17.5M SPECIALTY CONTRACT: Baltimore Gas and Electric raised customer bills to cover a $17.5 million contract for a Ford F-150 — a vehicle that state utility regulators at first said was worth about $100,000. Regulators and consumer watchdogs sparred with BGE in late 2023 over the cost of the contract. The vehicle is specially outfitted to help minimize the risk of electrical shocks in public spaces, and, BGE argued, it is available from just one company that can essentially name its price. Hallie Miller/The Baltimore Banner.

BA CO’s PROCESS TO PICK INSPECTOR GENERAL CRITICIZED: Government accountability groups are criticizing the process for selecting a Baltimore County inspector general, raising concerns that the current effort to appoint a new watchdog undermines the office’s independence and, according to one, is “irreparably damaged.” Natalie Jones/The Baltmore Sun.

COLUMN: FOR SALE: A BAY PARADISE AND A BOATLOAD OF POLITICS: Do you crave a place to launch boats, 6 acres of light industrial heaven right off the Chesapeake Bay with almost unlimited potential? Do you like political headaches? Have I got a deal for you! For a mere $3.45 million, you can buy Discovery Village in Shady Side. Rick Hutzell/The Baltimore Banner.

REP. OLSZEWSKI JOINS EQUAL PAY PUSH FOR WNBA PLAYERS: U.S. Rep. Johnny Olszewski Jr. has jumped into the conversation on equal pay for women’s basketball players, rallying behind some WNBA All-Stars seeking a new collective bargaining agreement with improved revenue-sharing for players. Carson Swick/The Baltimore Sun.

A HOUSE CANDIDATE TO START RACE AT DEMOLITION DERBY: Among the Saturday night 8-cylinder competitors in the Demolition Derby at the Cecil County Fair will be a 2000 Lincoln town car announcing the start of Erica Berge’s run for the Maryland House of Delegates in District 35B. The Port Deposit mother of eight has thrown her hat into the primary ring to run against incumbent Del. Kevin Hornberger. Jane Bellmyer/The Cecil Whig.

GAMBRILLS PHARMACIST SEEKS SEAT ON ARUNDEL COUNCIL: A pharmacist and business owner filed his candidacy for the District 4 seat on the Anne Arundel County Council in 2026. Tom Wieland, a Gambrills Republican, said he aims to mitigate the swelling traffic he’s witnessed since moving to the county 40 years ago. It’s an issue he blames on increased development combined with stagnant construction of infrastructure and roads. James Matheson/The Annapolis Capital.

HARFORD SHERIFF’s RACE GETS A CHALLENGER: For the first time since 2018, Carroll voters will have a choice in the sheriff’s race in next year’s primary election — and it might be a familiar name to fans of television shows “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “The Wire.” Jay Landsman Jr. announced this week he will take on three-term Sheriff Jim DeWees in the 2026 Republican primary. Bryna Zumer/The Carroll County Times.

MO CO TO ALLOW MULTI-UNIT HOMES ON SOME SINGLE-FAMILY LOTS: The Montgomery County Council voted Tuesday to enable multiunit homes to be built on certain lots previously zoned for single-family homes, an effort to address a “missing middle” housing shortage for middle-income residents in the wealthy Maryland county. Dana Munro/The Washington Post.

• The meeting was tense and at times volatile as councilmembers addressed the issue and the public provided impromptu feedback on the amendment, which aims to allow more residential building types – including duplexes, triplexes, townhomes and apartments – along the county’s transit corridors, with a requirement that 15% of a project’s proposed housing serve the local workforce. Ginny Bixby/Bethesda Today.

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