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Subcommittee reviews miscellaneous capital grants; analysts recommend some deletions while nonprofits and hospitals press for funds
Summary
The Capital Budget Subcommittee heard an overview of $187.2 million in miscellaneous capital grants for FY2026 and testimonial appeals from nonprofits, museums and hospitals seeking state support.
The Capital Budget Subcommittee heard a Department of Legislative Services overview of miscellaneous capital grants in the fiscal 2026 capital bill and testimony from nonprofit and health-care organizations seeking state support for individual projects.
Jacob Polico of the Department of Legislative Services summarized the miscellaneous grants program, noting fiscal 2026 includes $147.7 million in GO bond funds and $39.5 million in PEGO general funds across roughly 37 projects. Polico said $56.3 million provides funds for grants preauthorized in last year’s capital budget and identified a county breakdown showing Baltimore City, Prince George’s County and Baltimore County among the largest beneficiaries.
Polico and DLS recommended approving many grants (for example, ongoing funding for the Maryland Zoo and the National Aquarium roof replacement project), but he also recommended reducing or deleting several authorizations where DLS found issues. Specific reductions or deletions recommended in the analysis included trimming $750,000 for the Baltimore Museum of Art fire-suppression improvements, deleting $2.5 million for Adventist Health’s Fort Washington project in light of no planned 2026 spending, and deleting $1.5 million for Glen Echo Park’s Spanish Ballroom on federal-property grounds (DLS said the project is on National Park Service property).
Several witnesses urged the committee to preserve funding or explain local matches and federal partnerships. Katie Bramer, CEO of the Glen Echo Park Partnership for Arts and Culture, asked the subcommittee to retain $1.5 million in state funding for rehabilitation of the park’s Spanish Ballroom, saying the state appropriation would unlock federal funds and county match commitments for the $10.2 million project and that Glen Echo serves roughly 250,000 visitors a year. The Baltimore Museum of Art requested the full $1.5 million in the governor’s FY26 capital budget for critical systems upgrades, including fire suppression in first-floor storage vaults, a new air-cooled chiller and gallery upgrades; the museum said work began in February 2025 and that delays would force financing and operational strains.
Other witnesses included Johns Hopkins University asking the committee to preserve $2 million for a student design center, Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center requesting funds to add 48 private inpatient rooms in the Burton Pavilion to improve throughput and infection-control capacity, Catholic Charities seeking $2 million for an intergenerational center in West Baltimore, Morton Street Dance Center seeking a $300,000 grant for studio and facility upgrades, and Adventist Fort Washington Medical Center asking the committee to preserve earlier commitments toward a new medical center in Prince George’s County.
DLS’s analysis and the hearing record lay out recommended approvals, amendments and deletions; the transcript shows witness testimony and subcommittee questions but no recorded votes on the miscellaneous grant recommendations.
