With federal food assistance set to dry up at the end of the month, Maryland lawmakers are convening a hearing to see what, if anything, they can do to help.

The state’s first secretary of service and civic innovation is leaving his post, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore announced Monday.

One in nine Marylanders puts food on the table with the help of SNAP, but with benefits soon running out as a federal government shutdown drags on, Gov. Wes Moore is not planning to tap state money to keep the program running.

Maryland has not yet entered the national redistricting fray, but a poll commissioned by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee could put pressure on leaders to try to eke out one more Democratic member of Congress.

Maryland’s state government has $3.5 billion in “fully liquid cash” available for emergency needs, but the governor has not indicated whether he would use the money for SNAP.

Lawmakers mandated that the state issue cards with chip technology to Marylanders who receive food assistance and cash assistance, but the implementation has been stalled amid legal challenges.

The Maryland Transit Administration is offering free rides on MARC trains and commuter buses during the federal government shutdown.

Maryland Del. Charles Otto, who represented the Eastern Shore in Annapolis for nearly 15 years, has died, officials announced Friday.

While a majority of Marylanders approve of the job Gov. Wes Moore is doing, they struggle to identify his achievements and offer only soft support, according to a new statewide poll from The Banner.

An initiative dubbed “Contest Every Seat” aims to fill ballots across the state with Democratic candidates for the House of Delegates, state Senate, county councils and county commissions.

Weissmann was chief of staff for two Democratic Senate presidents: current President Bill Ferguson and the late, longtime President Thomas V. Mike Miller, from Prince George’s County.

“What we’re seeing from No Moore is what people hate about politics,” Gov. Wes Moore said.

It’s unclear, with the House of Representatives adjourned until next week, when lawmakers could consider their next moves to reopen the government.

The Maryland Correctional Institution-Jessup will close and 700 men incarcerated at the facility, along with 300 staff, will be transferred to other facilities by June.

With hundreds of jobs eliminated, Maryland’s state budget will see $47 million in savings annually.

Maryland and its Democrat-dominated congressional delegation sit in the crosshairs of the federal government spending fight.

Maryland is slightly behind expectations for the current budget year but can expect the budget to grow slightly for next year, according to the state’s latest round of financial forecasting.

“We’re not going to go and set expectations that we don’t think we can meet,” says Andy Ellis of Baltimore. Gubernatorial candidate Ellis and running mate Owen Silverman Andrews aim to rack up votes, increase influence.

President Donald Trump’s administration is questioning the cost of replacing Baltimore’s collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge and criticizing Maryland laws that require some of the work be contracted out to minority-owned businesses.

The governors of Maryland and Virginia — a Democrat and a Republican — professed an interest in civil dialogue and sidestepped questions about their political futures during a joint event in Washington.