BALTIMORE – If you’re a small-business owner who is having difficulty finding key talent, you’re not alone. Despite high unemployment, there is a shortage of qualified people in a wide range of occupations in the Baltimore area and across the country. Several key trends suggest these skills gaps are going to get worse. According to… Read more »
Opinion
More than 30,000 nonprofit organizations in Maryland
A report issued this week by the Tax Foundation ranked Maryland among one of the worst in the nation for its state tax policies. The Foundation has just released its 2013-2014 State Business Tax Climate Index, ranking states based on corporate tax rates, individual income taxes, sales taxes, unemployment insurance and property taxes. Overall Maryland… Read more »
Depreciation expense clarified
I feel obligated to comment on the article by Sheila Cherry on the Ocean Pines Board of Directors’ Training Retreat, which appeared in the September 19, 2013 edition. My comments relate specifically to depreciation expense on the new Yacht Club and its impact on the OPA annual assessment. I believe Ms. Cherry made a sincere… Read more »
OPA Board needs to regain control
Why is the Ocean Pines Board permitting its governing and fiscal authority to be usurped? Why has the General Manager been allowed to make change orders beyond his authority? Why, after making such changes, has his authority been raised from $15,000 to $40,000? Why is he being allowed to change community-approved plans for the appearance… Read more »
Community partners thanked for support
Editor, We, the Banquet Committee of the Germantown Heritage School, Berlin Maryland, would like to thank Our Community Partners for an outstandingly successful banquet held on September 14, 2013. You are the reason we succeed. Special Thanks to Berlin Mayor Gee Williams & Town Council, Worcester County Tourism Department & Director Lisa Challenger, Senator… Read more »
Md. Initiative aims to create new state
If Scott Strzelczyk has his way, Maryland’s iconic shape — stretching from the mountains around Deep Creek Lake to the Atlantic coast and creeping alongside the nation’s capital as it hugs the Chesapeake Bay — would cease to exist. The Carroll County resident is spearheading the Western Maryland Initiative, which aims to create a new… Read more »
Many offices 'relaxed' during summer
BALTIMORE, MD — While many offices are more relaxed during the summer months and some businesses even change their dress codes to reflect this, considerate behavior shouldn’t go on vacation. I often hear my clients complain about an absence of etiquette today (mostly related to the use of cell phones by younger people) and I’m… Read more »
Possibly too much of a good thing

What if they held an environmental crisis and no one cared? What if a law moving through Congress would significantly harm clean water, open space, the Chesapeake Bay? You’d hear the alarms, strong and clear, from the largest national groups to the smallest Chesapeake organizations. But you won’t, because this law is “only” about population, about significantly… Read more »
Common sense remains in courts
BALTIMORE–A federal judge’s ruling last week that upheld the ubiquitous and evenhanded practice of criminal background checks before employment signals that some measure of common sense still has a place in the nation’s courts. In a strongly worded opinion, U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus dismissed the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s attempt to cast… Read more »
Owners encouraged to take a vacation
BALTIMORE—Upon reading my “Out of office and off the grid” automated e-mail message, a client responded, “How do you DO that?” Being disconnected from his electronic tethers was beyond comprehension. And I suspect this is the case for many small business owners. Our work and personal time have fused into a boundary-less blur without traditional… Read more »