John Myrick
RepublicanQ1 Maryland residents are facing sharply rising electricity bills driven by a combination of power plant retirements, surging market prices, and rapidly growing demand (including from the proliferation of data centers across the region). If elected, what specific steps will you take to address the causes of high energy costs for Maryland residents and businesses, including data centers?
“We will have improved solar panels installed on the roofs of schools, and county and State office buildings. We will also incentivize private industry to install solar panels on their buildings (such as warehouses, shopping centers, and big box stores). We will remove our State from RGGI (the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative). We will work with the owners of the shuttered fossil fuel burning power plants to retrofit them to burn cleaner natural gas. We will also work with Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Plant to obtain the necessary federal permits to increase their reactor capacity. We will introduce modular nuclear technologies to Maryland. There is a company in Montgomery County that is at the forefront of this technology and they assure us that they can build safe, clean, reliable modular reactors in strategic locations in Maryland. The components for these reactors would be manufactured right here in Maryland - creating economic opportunities for hundreds (if not thousands) of Marylanders. Adding power to the grid will drive down costs. We will place a moratorium on new data center construction, until such time as we have stabilized the electricity issues for Maryland residents and brought down costs. Any new data center proposals will need to include plans for self-sustaining power generation and a comprehensive plan for water usage, reclamation, and treatment; as well as for noise abatement and aesthetics.”
Q2 Since early 2025, Maryland has lost nearly 25,000 federal jobs (more than any other state) as funding cuts to federal agencies including the NIH, NASA, and NIST take effect. How would you approach strengthening Maryland’s economy, and what steps would you take to ensure that workers across different roles and education levels benefit from those efforts?
“The federal government is Maryland’s largest employer and accounts for nearly one third of our total economy. It is the responsibility of the Governor to work with our largest employer, regardless of political party or personalities. The current Governor’s public refusal to work with the Administration is childish and counterproductive. I will work with our federal partners, regardless of political affiliation, to slow the hemorrhage of federal jobs and funding from our State, and will work to ensure that Marylanders are not disproportionally affected by federal downsizing.”
Q3 Maryland faces public health challenges ranging from stark socioeconomic health disparities, a behavioral health and opioid crisis that disproportionately impacts communities of color, gaps in rural mental health access, and a strained public health infrastructure. What evidence-based policies do you support to improve community health for your constituents?
“We will work with our federal partners, as well as our county and local partners, to ensure that Marylanders are afforded the best possible healthcare options. We will expand efforts to provide better access to care in our rural and urban communities; and our law enforcement personnel will re-double their collective efforts to stem the flow of opioids into our communities. We will also re-evaluate the eligibility requirements for those seeking State assistance, in order to ensure that Maryland’s most vulnerable residents are neither excluded nor are short-changed care. We will restore funding for Maryland disabled residents taken from the State budget and will seek to improve services across the board for all Marylanders.”
Q4 Across the state of Maryland, science and STEM education cultivate interest at a lower rate than intended, too few community-college students successfully transfer and complete bachelor’s degrees, and college affordability remains vulnerable to shifts in federal student aid and support. What evidence-based policies do you support to build a strong science and STEM pipeline from public schools and K-12 programs through colleges and universities for the next generation of Marylanders?
“The Maryland public school system is, by and large, broken and is failing to prepare our children for the future. We will look to restructure the system so that our children are provided the high-quality educational experience necessary to ensure their future success. We will invest heavily in STEM education and programs at all levels of education, and will work to provide opportunities for certification in STEM-related fields for students as early as Middle School.”
Q5 What policies, if any, do you support or envision for managing land-based resources in your district (i.e. water, open-space preserves, parks)?
“Maryland’s environment is critical to our continues success. We will take appropriate steps to protect and improve the condition of our waterways, the bay, our agricultural lands, and open spaces.”
Q6 What advisory mechanisms will you implement to ensure that evidence and scientific findings play a crucial role in your policymaking process?
“Our policy decisions will always be made in consultation with the appropriate experts in their specific fields, and with the best available information.”
Q7 What initiatives will you take to support investment in innovation via federal science funding?
“We will actively lobby Congress and The White House for continued and expanded investments in Maryland science-based enterprises and institutions. This will include efforts to expand investment at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, NIST, the Department of Energy, our DOD installations, and in Maryland universities for scientific research.”