"Tydings makes plea to gain aid for UM's campus in city,..." The Baltimore Sun, March 11, 2003

The Baltimore Sun March 11, 2003 Tuesday

March 11, 2003 Tuesday FINAL Edition

SECTION: LOCAL, Pg. 2B THE POLITICAL GAME

HEADLINE: Tydings makes plea to gain aid for UM's campus in city; Letter: The former senator says the mayor and legislators seem 'uninterested' in school's plight.

BYLINE: David Nitkin and Candus Thomson

FORMER U.S. Sen. Joseph D. Tydings has strong words for Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley and the city's state lawmakers.

In an impassioned letter last week, the University System of Maryland regent argues against budget cuts for University of Maryland, Baltimore, which he says has lost $37 million in state funds over two years.

"I am saddened to note that, whereas the county executives and legislative leadership of Prince George's and Montgomery counties are actively involved in fighting against similar budget cuts aimed at the University of Maryland College Park, Bowie State, Shady Grove Center and UMUC (University of Maryland University College)," Tydings writes, "the executive and legislative leadership of Baltimore are sadly and strangely silent and seemingly uninterested in saving the second-largest employer in Baltimore City from far more dangerous budget cuts.

"UMB is the founding campus of University of Maryland and the University System of Maryland," the letter continues. "It is the source of the majority of the state's practicing physicians, dentists, pharmacists, baccalaureate and graduate nurses and social workers, and a plurality of its practicing attorneys.

"Without this institution and the professionals who are trained here, the quality of life and economy in the Baltimore region would 'free fall.'"

Tydings said his letter was intended to be a "wake-up call," and he called on O'Malley "to convene an immediate emergency meeting of the Baltimore City delegation to review and discuss the contents."

O'Malley wrote back the next day, saying he hopes Tydings was "equally concerned about the proposed cut to local governments, including a transfer of $102 million from local highway user revenues and a proposed $92 million intercept of local income tax receipts."

The mayor said he wants Tydings to help urge Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. to "find revenue enhancements that will continue the investment in our people, our city and our state."

In an interview yesterday, Tydings said the O'Malley administration has been helpful since receiving the letter, but not as active as he had hoped.

"I wanted him to get involved and in the middle, but he said, 'We have too many other things going,'" Tydings said.

Tydings said he only realized in the past two weeks how serious the UMB budget situation is, and that he doesn't think other regents or city officials know it. "The more I dug, the worse it looked," he said.