Occupation: Maryland State Delegate, representing MoCo’s 16th District
Affiliations: Maryland Democratic Party. Former legislative assistant to longtime career politician (since 1997!) U.S. Representative Bradley J. (Brad) Sherman of California. Former legislative director to U.S. Representative Brian N. Baird of Washington state (2005-07). Member of the Maryland Legislative Latino Caucus. Also a member of the Maryland Legislative Jewish Caucus (formed after virulent antisemitism reared its head in Mr. Korman’s MoCo district and beyond in 2023-24).
Background: A state delegate since 2015, Delegate Korman was raised in Rockville, MD and attended high school in the county before going to Southern California for sunshine and left-leaning big government policy ideas. Named the Chair of the “Environment and Transportation Committee” in the Annapolis General Assembly, unfortunately for taxpayers, in 2023.
Hates growing prosperity and individual choice in MoCo? Yes, unfortunately. He’s got a very poor record of voting for nearly every tax-payer funded boondoggle in existence in the state. Take, for instance, his vote for state senate bill 720 in 2023. This bill established the “Maryland Thoroughbred Racetrack Operating Authority” and put Maryland taxpayer money into the “Maryland Racing Operations Fund”. What does horse race track building (to promote gambling on horse racing of course) have to do with middle class prosperity and why on earth would taxpayers ever foot the bill for it?
Why/how? Thanks for asking. Unfortunately, there is also no road toll Mr. Korman doesn’t support hiking and no automatic gas tax hike he won’t defend (remember, Maryland’s gas tax rate hikes at the “rate of inflation” without even a vote in the state house now). When asked by delegate colleagues to at least hold an up-or-down vote in committee and beyond on raising the gas tax during sky-high inflation in 2023 and 2024, the delegate punted. It was an opportunity to get Maryland delegates on the record as supporting a gas rate tax hike of 10% or more during a time when middle class families were (and are) getting hit by gasoline over $3 a gallon.
Fun fact: The delegate basically admits that MD can’t compete with Northern Virginia on job creation, and so he’s geeked about more semi-direct MD-VA “transit connections”. Now you can go to Northern VA with just a few stops! No peep from the Chair of the Transportation Committee in Annapolis about another Potomac River bridge, unfortunately.
What’s next? With Maryland’s government facing yet another operating budget shortfall even after hiking taxes and fees in 2024, any tax or toll hike will be on the table. Hold onto your wallet and find some tax-friendly accounts to sock away savings… Mr. Korman and friends are a-comin’.
Related posts:
CleanSlate MoCo Spotlight: Local Opponents of Prosperity & Individual Choice – State Delegate David Moon (District 20)
CleanSlate MoCo Spotlight: Local Opponents of Prosperity & Individual Choice – (New) State Senator Sara Love (District 16)
CleanSlate MoCo Spotlight: Local Opponents of Prosperity & Individual Choice – State Senator Ben Kramer (District 19)