Issue Position: Hogan's Plan

Issue Position

For the last three years, Larry Hogan has been the leading voice of opposition to the one-party monopoly in Annapolis. He has led the fight to change Maryland with substantive proposals, investigative analysis, and fact-driven insight. As governor, Larry Hogan will:

Cut over $1.75 billion in waste, fraud, and abuse from state government.

Our recent analysis of hundreds of state and federal audits show specific examples of waste, fraud, and abuse in Maryland state government that the current administration has refused to act on. These examples include use of government purchase cards on luxury items, personal use of state-owned vehicles, lack of fraud control in state agencies, widespread mismanagement, and more.

On day one, he will begin to run the government more cost-effectively and honestly. The Hogan-Rutherford administration will implement the recommendations of past audits, conduct additional independent audits of every state agency, and immediately get to work eliminating duplication, fraud, and waste to make sure that every cent of taxpayer money is spent efficiently.

Roll back taxes without cutting government priorities.

The $1.75 billion in waste and abuse that we have identified is unfortunately just the tip of the iceberg. It's unconscionable that despite this excess money thrown around in state agencies, Maryland continues to operate on a $400 million structural deficit.

By cutting the waste and abuse from state government, he will be able to save the taxpayers of Maryland billions of dollars without having to cut our priority programs and agencies. It is a simple solution to a problem that has plagued our state for the last eight years, and it will enable him to cut and eliminate the regressive taxes that have crushed middle-class families and small businesses.

Change Maryland's reputation as a state that is unfriendly to job creators.

Maryland's unemployment rate is 75% higher today than it was when the recession began. In fact, the nonpartisan Tax Foundation ranked Maryland #41 in the nation for business climate. The main reason for this unfortunate reality is that it costs too much for job creators to stay in or come to Maryland. He will reduce the burden on job creators, open Maryland for business, and make our state more competitive with others in our region. The Hogan-Rutherford administration will overhaul the Department of Business and Economic Development to focus on aggressively attracting and retaining job creators in order to bring more and better-paying jobs to Maryland.

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