Conduit Street Podcast

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, we check in on the 2026 Maryland General Assembly session as lawmakers approach the critical crossover deadline.

MACo’s Michael Sanderson, Dominic Butchko, and Kevin Kinnally break down where things stand in Annapolis, including the state budget outlook, mounting fiscal pressure on legislation, and a surge of housing bills aimed at addressing affordability across Maryland.

The conversation als...

On this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, Michael Sanderson sits down with Dr. Roger E. Hartley of the University of Baltimore’s College of Public Affairs for a wide-ranging discussion on the future of public service in Maryland.

Hartley reflects on his decade as dean and discusses how institutions of higher learning can better partner with state and local governments to strengthen leadership pipelines, modernize workforce trai...

As Maryland lawmakers weigh how to address a looming transportation “cliff,” local leaders are sounding the alarm about what’s at stake for local roads and bridges.

In this special episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, hosts Michael Sanderson and Shantelle Malcolm-Lym bring listeners inside the February 3 Senate Budget and Taxation Committee hearing on Senate Bill 288, legislation aimed at stabilizing Highway User Revenues for loca...

In this week’s episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, our familiar hosts Kevin Kinnally and Michael Sanderson take the microphone to walk us through Governor Wes Moore’s proposed FY27 budget and the accompanying Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act – or as Michael likes to call it, “Big BRFA.”

They break down the topline numbers, explain how the budget closes a projected shortfall, and examine what the plan ultimately means for l...

As flu season intensifies and public health misinformation continues to circulate, counties remain on the front lines of protecting community health.

In this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, Michael Sanderson and Karrington Anderson are joined by Dr. Meena Brewster, Health Officer for St. Mary’s County, to discuss how local health departments operate as both strategists and first responders within Maryland’s shared public heal...

As Maryland heads into the 2026 General Assembly session, county governments are confronting a familiar challenge, but with sharper edges.

In this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, MACo’s Kevin Kinnally, Michael Sanderson, and Dominic Butchko break down why affordability is the defining theme of the upcoming session. From rising construction and labor costs to housing shortages, energy prices, and growing uncertainty out of Was...

As Maryland heads toward another consequential legislative session, energy policy is once again front and center, and counties are feeling the pressure.

In this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, hosts Kevin Kinnally and Dominic Butchko are joined by Valencia McClure, Senior Vice President of Governmental, Regulatory, and External Affairs at Exelon, for a wide-ranging conversation on energy security, rising costs, and grid relia...

What does it take for a county to move toward functional zero for homelessness?

In this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, hosts Karrington Anderson and Dominic Butchko sit down with Kelly Cimino, Director of the Howard County Department of Housing and Community Development, to unpack The Path Toward Zero, Howard County’s ambitious five-year plan to end homelessness.

Kelly walks through what “functional zero” really means in prac...

In this episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, our host Dominic Butchko is joined by Zach Schafer, Assistant Secretary at the Maryland Department of the Environment, for a wide-ranging conversation on the environmental issues shaping county decision-making ahead of the 2026 General Assembly session.

Drawing on his experience at both the federal and state levels, including time at the U.S. EPA, Schafer discusses the growing focus on ...

Recorded live at MACo’s 2025 Winter Conference, this episode features an in-depth, candid conversation with Alex Donahue, Executive Director of the Interagency Commission on School Construction (IAC), on one of the most pressing challenges facing Maryland counties: school construction.

Joined by MACo Executive Director Michael Sanderson, Donahue breaks down why school construction costs have risen dramatically, how inflation and fun...

As Maryland heads into a challenging budget year and an election cycle legislative session, Professor Todd Eberly of St. Mary’s College of Maryland joins the Conduit Street Podcast to unpack the forces shaping the state’s political and economic landscape.

Kevin Kinnally and Michael Sanderson talk with Prof. Eberly about the ripple effects of federal government shutdowns, trade and tariff policy, disaster aid, Medicaid funding, and t...

Housing will take center stage in the 2026 legislative session, and counties are ready. This week, Kevin Kinnally, Michael Sanderson, and Dom Butchko walk through MACo's major legislative initiative, the BAMBY Act (Build Affordably in My Backyard).

Together they trace the recent history of housing policy in Maryland, unpack the 2025 session, and outline the solutions counties are bringing to the table this year - including zoni...

In this week's episode of the Conduit Street Podcast, Karrington Anderson talks with Sarah Sample to break down the rapidly evolving world of Public Information Act (PIA) requests in Maryland and why counties are feeling the pressure. They talk through the effects of the rise of automated and anonymous AI-generated PIA requests, cybersecurity threats entering through the request funnel, and how counties are navigating challeng...

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, Kevin Kinnally, Michael Sanderson, and Karrington Anderson debut a new recurring segment – Conduit Street Podcast Hot Takes, where our hosts break down what’s “news” and what’s just… “noise” in Maryland policy and politics.

In this episode, the trio tackles the ongoing federal government shutdown, exploring how it’s straining Maryland’s economy, threatening food assistance programs like SNAP,...

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, Kevin Kinnally and Michael Sanderson sit down with Congressman Johnny Olszewski, Jr., a former Maryland Delegate, Baltimore County Executive, and 2025 MACo President, now serving Maryland’s Second Congressional District.

Congressman Olszewski discusses the federal shutdown and the strain it places on Maryland communities, particularly those where federal pay and services are a significant anc...

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, Michael Sanderson...goes solo? Just kidding! He does set the stage, however, for a special recording from St. Mary’s County, where MACo President and Queen Anne’s County Commissioner Jack Wilson joins Michael for a briefing with St. Mary’s County leaders to talk all things local governance. 

It’s a lively, conversation that hits the big levers counties are wrestling with right now: the State’...

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, Dominic Butchko sits down with Jason Stanek of PJM Interconnection for a deep dive into Maryland’s evolving energy landscape. From the state’s growing dependence on imported electricity to the backlog of clean energy projects waiting to connect to the grid, Jason breaks down the challenges and opportunities shaping Maryland’s energy future. The conversation explores how PJM keeps the lights ...

This week on the Conduit Street Podcast, Kevin Kinnally and Michael Sanderson unpack Maryland’s fiscal outlook. They break down the State’s year-end budget results, the new revenue forecast, and looming structural deficits. They also dig into the crunch in transportation funding — with local road dollars set to plunge off a fiscal cliff — the threat of a federal shutdown, and the squeeze these pressures put on county budgets and th...

From literacy programs to telehealth pods, Maryland’s libraries are evolving far beyond bookshelves. Join this week's Conduit Street host, Sarah Sample, as she sits down with Maryland State Librarian Morgan Lehr Miller to explore how local libraries serve as community hubs, connect residents to vital resources, and adapt to funding challenges at the state and federal levels. Hear how Maryland libraries are strengthening commun...