Kevin Spradlin
Cumberland Times-News Wed Sep 22, 2010, 10:04 AM EDT
9/22 — CUMBERLAND — Perhaps for the first time in a long time, organizers of the annual Mountain Maryland PACE reception and legislative breakfast in Annapolis have latched on to a talking point on which jurisdictions across Maryland can agree.
The No. 1 priority for elected officials and business professionals alike, said PACE committee co-chairman David Moe, is to convince lawmakers to restore highway user revenue funds, which have been taken by Gov. Martin O’Malley to shore up the state’s budget.
Moe said the message of the 35th annual event, scheduled for Jan. 27 and 28, will convey in part how leaders in Garrett and Allegany counties have struggled to cope with the state budget cuts to local governments.
“The cut in highway user funds has been devastating for all municipalities,” Moe said. “It just cannot continue.”
More than a dozen PACE Committee members met Sept. 15 at Penn Alps Restaurant in Grantsville to begin planning for the 2011 event.
Other talking points are likely to include ensuring that funding of teacher pensions remains a state obligation — and is not shifted to Maryland counties — as well as Garrett County’s new strategic plan that is about to be published.
At the committee’s Sept. 29 meeting at the same location, Moe said this year’s theme should be finalized.
In January 2010, the theme was “Think Green, Think Mountain Maryland.” So far, 21 possible themes are being considered for the next PACE. Options include “The Summit of Success,” “Back to the Future,” A Place to Do Business” and “Getting There From Here.”
“It’s always a challenge to come up with something that’s unique,” Moe said. “The idea is to get state government to remember Western Maryland doesn’t end at Frederick.”
He said the theme does not necessarily have to incorporate the services and offerings of displayers, which often range from utility companies, defense contractors, tourism-related operations and higher education.
Attendance in 2010 was down by a little more than one-third, Moe said. However, the number of displayers and sponsorship dollars both were up.
PACE is a joint effort between the Cumberland-Allegany County Industrial Foundation and the Garrett Development Corp.
Kevin Spradlin can be reached at kspradlin@times-news.com
