All eyes are on Washington as the United States Senate vets the wealthiest and least diverse group of cabinet nominees in the modern era. But Marylanders should peel themselves away from the spectacle, if only for a moment, and look toward a small hearing room on the fourth floor of the Senate Office Building in Annapolis, where state senators review Gov. Larry Hogan's nominees to lead state agencies, boards and commissions.
Like United States senators, Maryland senators have the powers of advice and consent on executive nominations. Many of these are appointments to unpaid boards that operate with little public attention or appreciation. Others, however, are nominations to well-paid jobs leading massive state bureaucracies or powerful positions tasked with interpreting and enforcing state law. Appointments in this second category require rigorous scrutiny to ensure nominees are as qualified as they are ethical.
Mr. Hogan's early appointments were a mixed bag. Some, like Secretary of the Environment Ben Grumbles, Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene Van Mitchell, and Secretary of Labor Licensing and Regulation Kelly Schulz earned bipartisan praise for their policy chops or management skills. Others, notably Secretary of Housing and Community Development Ken Holt and Secretary of Transportation Pete Rahn, committed embarrassing gaffes or demonstrated more interest in partisan chicanery than substantive governing.
Mr. Hogan's current appointments are an equally mixed bag. The Senate should conduct a thorough review to ensure they are capable of executing their duties and are free of all conflicts of interest. Three merit extremely close scrutiny.
Dennis Schrader, nominated to lead the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene after Mr. Mitchell's departure, appears ill-prepared to handle the triple threat of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, the potential loss of the state's Medicare waiver and an out-of-control opioid crisis. This confluence of crises would seriously test a professional with deep experience in health care delivery and financing. With a background in facilities management and emergency management, Mr. Schrader will need extensive on-the-job training to handle any one of these crises, let alone all three. Before confirming Mr. Schrader, the Senate needs to determine whether he is capable of leading the state's health care system through rapid, profound and potentially existential change.
Wendi Peters, nominated to lead the Department of Planning, appears to lack the experience to lead an agency of 131 people that will spend $29.5 million in fiscal year 2018. Prior to her nomination, Ms. Peters spent the vast majority of her career as a paralegal, and her experience as a town council member in Mt. Airy, a rural hamlet of 10,000 on the border of Carroll and Frederick Counties, hardly prepared her to solve problems facing larger, more complex jurisdictions. Before confirming Ms. Peters, the Senate needs to determine whether she has the experience and vision to manage a mid-sized state agency.
Gordon Medenica, nominated to lead the State Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, sparked a dispute that raises questions about his ethics. In a contract worth more than $200 million, Mr. Medenica required bidders to include the cost of providing services that are not currently legal in Maryland, including online lottery ticket sales. He then awarded the contract to a company that partially owned a business venture in which he was once a senior executive. To make matters worse, that company's bid was the most expensive, costing the state tens of millions of dollars more than the next highest bid. Before confirming Mr. Medenica, the Senate needs to determine whether he can put the people's interests ahead of his pre-existing business relationships.
Democrats in the Maryland Senate have the power to put their stamp on state government, and they should use it. They must ask Mr. Hogan's nominees tough questions to gauge their competence and potential conflicts of interest, and to determine whether cronyism played a role in their appointments. If Mr. Hogan's nominees cannot provide satisfactory answers, the Senate should reject them.
Pat Murray is a former executive director of the Maryland Democratic Party and a former aide to the presiding officers of the Maryland General Assembly. His email address is patrickhmurray@gmail.com.
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