Hogan declines, for now, request to double cash for fixing heating problems in Baltimore schools

Gov. Larry Hogan has declined a request to double the amount of emergency assistance he’s giving to Baltimore schools to fix heating problems.

In a letter to legislative leaders this week, Hogan said that after the $2.5 million he has committed is spent, he will consider releasing more money if it’s warranted.

The money is coming from an account called the Catastrophic Events Fund.

Last week, Hogan offered $2.5 million to city schools after a cold snap left students and teachers in some schools huddled in classrooms wearing winter coats. Schools were closed for days while crews fixed faulty boilers and broken pipes.

Then a group of lawmakers called the Legislative Policy Committee asked the governor to commit $5 million instead. House Speaker Michael E. Busch and Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller called the school heating problems an “exigent need.”

Read more: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-hogan-heating-money-20180119-story.html