Veto overrides have both sides looking for votes

ANNAPOLIS —  An attempt to override a bill changing how taxes are assessed on online hotel bookings is pitting the Maryland Chamber of Commerce against Republican Gov. Larry Hogan and has some Republican legislators rankled.

The bill is one of six that are scheduled for veto-override votes on Wednesday and part of a test some legislators see an indication of whether the Democrat-controlled House and Senate plan to work with the governor this session.

Among other vetoed bills scheduled to be considered are ones granting felons the ability to vote while still on probation and placing new limits on the seizure of criminal assets.

A number of the votes scheduled could be delayed as Democrats in the House and Senate whip votes and may look to further delay an attempt to override until later in the session.

Marriott impact

Supporters of Senate Bill 190, which deals with the online hotel booking tax, say the change would level the playing field for companies such as Expedia and Travelocity and traditional brick and mortar hotels. Hogan vetoed the bill not because of an anti-tax stand but because the issue is the subject of a court case. The governor, in his veto message, called on lawmakers to “respect the long-standing practice of not passing legislation that would directly affect matters being litigated in a pending court case.”

Sen. Richard Madaleno, D-Montgomery County and sponsor of the legislation, and other supporters say failing to override Hogan’s veto would hasten the exit of Marriott International, which is currently looking to move from its headquarters in Bethesda.

“I’m hoping we can make a very strong statement to Marriott that the Democrats value the hospitality industry in this state and want to protect it,” Madaleno said. “In the end, (Marriott) saw how strongly we supported them in the passing of this bill. It was the governor who walked away from them so they’re going to see a strong vote in both chambers. Hopefully that will demonstrate to them that we value them here and this is smart policy that other states should adopt.”

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. chided the governor over the veto.

“The governor said there’s not going to be any kind of tax increase,” Miller said. “He even vetoed this Marriott bill which, by its definition, is insanity. It’s not even a tax increase. It’s just a question of whether the tax will be imposed at the retail level or the wholesale level.”

The override effort has the support of organizations such as the American Hotel and Lodging Association and the Maryland Chamber of Commerce.

Kathy Snyder, interim president of the organization, said the stance was consistent with the chamber’s support of the bill last year and acknowledged that Democratic legislators were particular targets of group’s letter of support.

“The letter was sent to legislators with whom we thought might be willing to consider an override,” Snyder said in an email. “Not all legislators will.”

The chamber sent letters to Democratic senators urging them to override the veto — a move that puts the organization in direct opposition with a pro-business governor and has irritated Republicans in the Senate.

“I think they should have sent it to all of us,” said Sen. J.B. Jennings, R-Baltimore and Harford Counties and Senate minority leader. “I’m willing to overlook it this time since they’ve had a lot of change over there with their president and their lobbyist leaving.”

The legislation passed in the Senate with 32 votes — three more than what is needed to override a veto. Observers say there is concern that support for an override may not be rock solid.

In the Senate, Republicans only need to get to a total of 19 votes to prevent an override. In most cases it’s expected that all of the 14 Republicans will back Hogan’s vetoes even if they voted for the bills last year.

In the House, the vote was one shy of a veto-proof majority and Republican lawmakers say they will make every effort to lean on Democrats in areas they believe could be vulnerable to an election challenge such as Anne Arundel, Baltimore and Harford Counties, to vote to sustain Hogan’s veto.

Targeting the speaker

In addition to the online hotel tax bill, legislators Wednesday will attempt to override the governor’s veto of five other pieces of legislation including one House and Senate bill that are identical. Also up for an override vote is a line-item veto of a $2 million capital grant to one of House Speaker Michael E. Busch’s favorite recipients. The veto override is considered all but certain when it finally comes before both the House and Senate.

Two bills that could be the most likely candidates for a veto override include House Bill 209, legislation clarifying how hotel taxes are collected in Howard County, and Senate Bill 528, which placed new limits on the seizure of criminal assets. Both passed with more than the 85 votes in the House and the 29 in the Senate needed to overturn the governor’s decision.

Hogan, in his veto letter, said the $300 threshold in the Senate bill “would greatly inhibit local law enforcement agencies from pursuing asset forfeiture from drug dealers. In addition, the bill poses new restrictions that would interfere with joint federal and State task forces investigating drug crimes.”

Also likely to fall to an override vote is a $2 million capital grant to Annapolis-based Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, which is in Busch’s district. Hogan used his line-item veto to eliminate the project in what was seen as retaliation for Busch not introducing the Republican governor’s supplemental budgets late last session.

Republicans, including Hogan, defend the veto, saying that the center was slated to receive $500,000 last year but that amount was later increased to $2 million.

Key indicator

The fate of other vetoed bills is less certain.

Jennings said the success of the veto overrides will be a key indicator of whether the legislature is looking to work with Hogan or attempting to lower the poll numbers of a popular Republican in his second year in office.

Among the other bills rejected by Hogan include Senate Bill 517, legislation decriminalizing marijuana paraphernalia – or, as some call it, “the toking while driving bill” – and Senate Bill 340, which grants felons the ability to vote while still on probation.

Republicans and Democrats agree that the overriding either bill is not a guarantee a week into the session.

Hogan vetoed the decriminalization law at the behest of law enforcement associations and the Maryland State’s Attorney’s Association, claiming it would prevent police from pulling over a car in which the driver or passenger was smoking marijuana.

Sen. Robert A. “Bobby” Zirkin, D-Baltimore County and sponsor of the bill said the assertion was “absurd.”

“It’s not legal to smoke marijuana in a car or outside,” said Zirkin, who is also the chairman of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee. “If the reasons they are shopping around are their real reasons, then they have no reason at all because their claims are factually false.”

Political pressure is also mounting on both sides over the pending override of legislation that would allow convicted felons to vote even though they are still serving out their parole or probation.

For many Democrats, the bill is a core issue, and supporters and advocates are attempting to firm up support for an override vote in both the House and Senate where neither outcome is certain just days before the vote.

Del. Kathy Szeliga, R-Baltimore and Harford Counties and House minority whip, said Republicans would be looking to pick up Democrats to help sustain the veto.

“We’ll be looking at targeting Democrats in areas like Harford and Anne Arundel counties who may be more vulnerable to challenges in 2018,” Szeliga said.