Hogan invited to testify in support of Northrop Grumman deal

Democrats leading the General Assembly said Tuesday that they would vote on the $20 million loan for aerospace giant Northrop Grumman that the Hogan administration has pushed, as soon as Republican Gov. Larry Hogan testifies personally that he wants it.

The governor immediately declined the unusual invitation, prolonging the uncertainty about whether the state will deliver on a promise to one if its biggest employers.

Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller and House Speaker Michael E. Busch laid out the request Tuesday in a letter to Hogan, inviting him to appear before the Legislative Policy Committee and agreeing in exchange to schedule long-delayed votes on the loan for Northrop.

"We, too, have a responsibility to the people of Maryland to ensure that the taxpayers are getting a good deal," the Democrats wrote. Although the legislature voted for the deal, the two leaders said lawmakers still do not have many crucial details and have "long been concerned with the mechanics" of business incentives offered by the state.

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