That’s if Governor Martin O’Malley has his way. Sources close to the legislative process reveal that Governor Martin O’Malley has been pushing House Bill 825 through the Maryland House of Delegates. The bill would increase the rates for Maryland Automobile Insurance Fund (MAIF) customers. MAIF is for drivers who are unable to afford car insurance in the private market. So you can imagine what’s going to happen if this bill passes. More people will struggle with making ends meet and some will opt to drive without any insurance at all.
You would think that raising car insurance rates for the most financially vulnerable in Maryland wouldn’t be a good move in this economic climate, but Governor O’Malley needs the votes of trial lawyers in Maryland. A little political quid pro quo is at work here. But O’Malley isn’t crazy. The bill won’t take affect until January 2011 – a convenient 2 months after this November’s elections. By the time the increased rates hit the customers, the election will be over and few people will even care to listen to the MAIF customer base.
But you need to know that Governor O’Malley isn’t pushing this through without some help. There are folks on the Economic Matters Committee who are complicit in this conspiratorial plot as well. In fact, the majority of them are pushing this bill through after two or three years of soundly rejecting it.
Because Baltimore City drivers would be disproportionately impacted by increased rates (WE ALREADY PAY THE HIGHEST CAR INSURANCE RATES IN THE STATE!), I was curious to see where Baltimore legislators stood on this bill. I was convinced that they would be standing together in opposition of higher car insurance rates for their constituents. But oh how wrong I was.
Thanks to a new feature on the Maryland General Assembly website, I was able to see how members of the Economic Matters Committee voted on the bill.
Of the four Baltimore City delegates who serve on the committee, ALL FOUR OF THEM VOTED IN FAVOR OF THIS BILL. Our Baltimore City delegates are hard at work in Annapolis representing somebody’s interest – just not yours all the time.
So Baltimore City MAIF Customers – when you get a HIGHER CAR INSURANCE BILL in the mail come January 2011, you can send a thank you card to:
Delegate Hattie Harrison (D-45)
Delegate Carolyn Krysiak (D-46)
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