BALTIMORE (WBFF) — Maryland lawmakers concluded the 2026 legislative session without passing a bill aimed at ensuring government watchdogs have access to records necessary for investigations, despite initial efforts to introduce such legislation. Now, the leader of the senate appears to be drawing a line in the sand on the issue.
While in session, Senate President Bill Ferguson acknowledged the delay on moving on the legislation, citing ongoing discussions and a lawsuit involving Baltimore City’s Inspector General as reasons for the holdup.
“We’re still working on this issue. We want to make sure that we get this one right,” Ferguson said on March 20.
ALSO READ | Ferguson targets Baltimore watchdog as oversight fight intensifies
He later added, “There’s a lot going on in the next two weeks,” indicating the complexity of the legislative agenda in the final weeks of session.
With just days remaining in the session, Ferguson suggested the bill was “getting close” to moving forward. However, the session ended without any legislative action on the measure, leaving inspectors general without the expanded access they sought.
FOX45 News reached out to the inspectors general in Maryland – in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Howard County, and Montgomery County – to find out if they heard from Sen. Ferguson at all during session.
“We have never received any correspondence from anyone in Senator Ferguson’s office,” Baltimore City Inspector General Isabel Cumming told FOX45 News.
Megan Davey Limarzi, the watchdog in Montgomery County, told FOX45 News in a statement that she will continue to “pursue a legislative response that will enable my office to do our job in the thorough and independent way our community demands,” despite the legislation’s failure to pass.
“The Montgomery County OIG has existed for almost 30 years and our county law has always articulated a commitment to full access to county records for the Inspector General,” Davey Limarzi said. “I plan to spend time this summer speaking with elected officials to find a path forward next session and welcome dialogue with the Senate President’s office, just as I offered during session.”
The effects of the use of MPIA to limit IG access are still coming into focus but without an exemption to the MPIA, IGs will be forced to divert resources to resolve document disputes, they will be limited in their ability to provide timely oversight, and ultimately, government transparency will be obscured, Montgomery County Inspector General Megan Davey Limarzi told FOX45 News via statement.
Meanwhile, Cumming is facing backlash after sharing, and later deleting, a post on X that included an AI-generated image depicting Mayor Brandon Scott surrounded by cash and luxury items.
Cumming issued a public apology, stating she did not notice the image when sharing the post, does not endorse it, and removed it once she became aware. In her statement, she directly apologized to the mayor.
Responding to Cumming’s post, Ferguson weighed in on the issue and criticized the apology, calling it “insufficient” and warned the incident “undermines public trust and the work of an oversight office overall.”
“This whole episode is exactly why a thoughtful, purposeful framework for accessing data in the public sector is so important,” he added.
However, Baltimore City Councilman Mark Conway pushed back on what he called “a coordinated effort” to use Cumming’s mistake and limit access for inspectors general.
“I think we can all agree the inspector general’s post was inappropriate, and she’s acknowledged that. She’s put forward an apology,” Conway said. “It looks like a coordinated effort to ensure that the IG doesn’t complete her investigation that she’s currently doing right now into the MONSE SideStep program, and I think it’s a distraction from the bigger picture here.”
Conway referred to an OIG report about the youth diversion program that’s no longer operating, called SideStep. The investigation found fraudulent invoices connected to the program and the findings have been referred for potential criminal prosecution.
“We already know that the IG has found fraud, even though she was prevented from getting access to all the documents she requested, she already found fraud,” Conway added.
Conway introduced a bill in the city council to restore document access; the effort would make the OIG a co-custodian of records. However, that effort appears to be facing an uphill road garnering enough to support. City Council President Zeke Cohen raised legal concerns with the legislation and argued the issue should be resolved at the state level.
“The truth is going to come out,” Conway said, talking about the ongoing probe into SideStep. “We’re going to really ask the question: Did you stand with the interest of the mayor in the moment, or do you stand with the people and make sure that tax dollars were well spent?”
Questions to Senate President Ferguson’s Office about any plans to visit the inspector general document access issue over the interim went unanswered Friday.
Follow Political Reporter Mikenzie Frost on X and Facebook. Send tips to mbfrost@sbgtv.com.
Local Story
