WCTR News

Queen Anne’s County Commissioners have released their proposed operating and capital budget for Fiscal Year 2026. The proposed operating budget for the general fund totals $209.1 million, reflecting an 8.8% increase over FY 2025. The proposed capital budget is $47.2 million, with a six-year capital improvement plan totaling $464.8 million for all County agencies and the Board of Education. The budget is balanced with no increases to property or income tax rates.

Kent County Commissioners have approved an additional $300,000 in funding for public schools, supporting Superintendent Mary Boswell-McComas’s plan to minimize staff reductions amid budget challenges. Kent County News reports the funding comes after the school board earlier this week voted to support “Option B” of McComas’s budget proposal, which reduces 18 positions rather than the 44 that would have been cut under the alternative plan.

On April 22, 2025, deputies with the Queen Anne’s County Office of the Sheriff responded to a report of past fraud at the Queenstown Bank of Maryland in Grasonville, MD. Bank employees reported two separate incidents in which the same individuals visited their ATM, caused damage to the machine, and attempted to install a skimming device. Both attempts were unsuccessful. Two individuals charged in the case are identified as Alexandru Popescu and Mircea Costin Dragoi.

The Kent County Local Management Board is recruiting new members to help establish goals and funding priorities for children and families in the county. The Kent County News reports the board coordinates public agencies, nonprofits and residents to coordinate resources and develop strategies for supporting youth and families. Current board-funded initiatives include Minary’s Dream Academy after-school program at Kent County Middle School, the Beyond Your Mental peer mentoring program at Kent County High School, and the Healthy Families home visiting program for new parents.

A new memorial plaque at the Kennard African American Cultural Heritage Center recognizes approximately 435 Black soldiers from Queen Anne’s County who fought for the Union Army during the Civil War, filling a gap in local history and honoring their profound impact on the community. The Bay Times & Record Observer reports local veterans and residents gathered recently to dedicate the monument.

The Kent County Board of Education is scheduled to vote on the superintendent’s proposed budget for fiscal year 2026 at a special meeting Monday night, May 5. The Evening Enterprise reports the proposed spending plan for the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2025 was the only topic of discussion at two separate meetings this week. The school system is expected to bring in $30.9 million in funds from local, state and federal sources, but has projected expenditures of $32.7 million. To help close the $2 million funding gap, 36 positions may have to be eliminated.

The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) will hold its annual Stamp Out Hunger postal food drive Saturday, May 10. The organization invites the public to place a bag of nonperishable food times (no glass jars, please) next to their mailbox before the mail typically is picked up that day. The letter carrier will collect the food and ensure it gets to people in need. To volunteer to help unload food donations from postal trucks at post offices, visit fbd.volunteerhub.com

The Maryland Public Service Commission will hold a virtual public hearing Thursday, May 8, at 7 p.m. on a proposal to build a 5.0-megawatt solar facility in Kent County. Halo Warwick, LLC applied in December 2024 for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to construct the solar generating station on 29 acres of a 338-acre property in Massey. The project is intended as part of Maryland’s community solar program.

A Queen Anne’s County Sheriff’s deputy is recovering after being struck in the line of duty by a suspected drunk driver. It happened around 11:19pm Sunday, along eastbound Route 50, near Romancoke Road.
WMAR reports that’s where Deputy First Class Schulz was in the middle of a traffic stop, when his patrol car was suddenly hit from behind by a speeding car. The impaired driver’s car became disabled, and he was taken into custody.

A small plane crashed Wednesday morning while landing at an airport near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, officials said. The Baltimore Sun reports the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday that the plane, a four-seat Cirrus aircraft, crashed while landing at around 10:30 a.m. The plane’s pilot, the only person on board, was not injured, though the Cirrus SR22 “sustained significant damage” at the Bay Bridge Airport in Stevensville.