Editing Governor of Maryland (section)

==Functions and responsibilities==
As the chief executive of the State of Maryland, the governor heads the executive branch of government, which includes all state executive departments and agencies, as well as advisory boards, commissions, committees, and task forces. The main constitutional responsibility of the governor of Maryland, and any other state's chief executive, is to carry out the business of the state and to enforce the laws passed by the legislature. The governor also has some say in these laws, since the governor has the ability to veto any bill sent to his or her desk by the [[Maryland General Assembly]], though the assembly may override that veto. The governor is also given a number of more specific powers as relates to appropriations of state funds, the appointment of state officials, and also a variety of less prominent and less commonly utilized powers.<ref name=origins/>

===Appropriations===
Every year, the governor must present a proposed budget to the [[Maryland General Assembly]]. After receiving the proposed budget, the assembly is then allowed to decrease any portion of the budget for the executive branch, but it may never increase it or transfer funds between executive departments. The assembly may, however, increase funds for the legislative and judicial branches of government.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 15, 2007 |title=Budget and Fiscal Policy |url=http://dls.state.md.us/side_pgs/budget_fiscal/budget_fiscal.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070615131657/http://dls.state.md.us/side_pgs/budget_fiscal/budget_fiscal.html |archive-date=June 15, 2007 |access-date=July 11, 2007 |website=Department of Legislative Services}}</ref> The governor has the power to [[veto]] any law that is passed by the [[Maryland General Assembly|General Assembly]], including a "[[Line-item veto|line item veto]]", which can be used to strike certain portions of appropriations bills. The legislature then has the power to override a governor's veto by vote of three-fifths (60%) of the number of members in each house.<ref name=origins/>

The governor also sits on the board of public works, whose other two members are the comptroller and the treasurer. This board has broad powers in overseeing and approving the spending of state funds. They must approve state expenditures of all general funds and capital improvement funds, excluding expenditures for the construction of state roads, bridges, and highways. It has the power to solicit loans on its own accord either to meet a deficit or in anticipation of other revenues, in addition to approving expenditures of funds from loans authorized by the General Assembly.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Maryland Board of Public Works: Origin and Functions |url=https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/08conoff/html/05bpwf.html |access-date=March 15, 2022 |website=Maryland Manual On-Line}}</ref>

===Appointment powers===
The governor appoints almost all military and civil officers of the state government, subject to advice and consent of the [[Maryland Senate|Maryland State Senate]]. The governor also appoints certain boards and commissions in each [[list of counties in Maryland|of the 24 counties]] and in [[Baltimore|Baltimore City]], such as local Boards of Elections, commissions [[notary public|notaries public]], and appoints officers to fill vacancies in the elected offices of [[Attorney General of Maryland|attorney general]] and [[Comptroller of Maryland|comptroller]].<ref name=origins/> Should a vacancy arise in either of the two houses of the General Assembly, the governor also fills that vacancy, though the governor must choose from among the recommendations of the local party organization to which the person leaving the vacancy belonged.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tallman |first=Douglas |date=October 26, 2005 |title=Lawton Appointed to District 18 Seat |work=Gazette.net |url=http://www.gazette.net/stories/102605/silvnew180927_31912.shtml |access-date=June 27, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070929092006/http://www.gazette.net/stories/102605/silvnew180927_31912.shtml |archive-date=September 29, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Any officer appointed by the governor, except a member of the General Assembly, is removable by him or her, if there is a legitimate cause for removal. Among the most prominent of the governor's appointees are the 24 secretaries and heads of departments that currently make up the governor's [[Cabinet (government)|Cabinet]], also known as the executive council.<ref name=origins/>

===Executive council===
The governor of Maryland is the chairman of the governor's executive council (or Cabinet) which coordinates all state government functions. This is composed of the following members, all of whom, except the lieutenant governor, are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the [[Maryland Senate|Maryland State Senate]] as heads of executive departments:<ref name="msa.md.gov cabinet">{{Cite web |title=Governor's Executive Council (Cabinet) |url=https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/08conoff/html/01coun.html |access-date=March 15, 2022 |website=Maryland Manual On-Line}}</ref>
*Lieutenant governor – [[Aruna Miller]]
*Secretary of State – [[Susan C. Lee]]
*Secretary of Aging – [[Carmel Roques]]
*Secretary of Agriculture – Kevin Atticks
*Secretary of Budget and Management – Helene Grady
*Secretary of Commerce – [[Harry Coker]]
*Secretary of Disabilities – Carol Beatty
*State Superintendent of Schools (appointed by the State Board of Education to direct the [[Maryland State Department of Education]]) – [[Carey Wright]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ford |first1=William J. |title=Md. Board of Education picks Carey Wright as permanent public schools superintendent |url=https://www.marylandmatters.org/2024/04/24/md-board-of-education-picks-carey-wright-as-permanent-public-schools-superintendent/ |access-date=April 24, 2024 |work=[[Maryland Matters]] |date=April 24, 2024}}</ref>
*Secretary of Environment – Serena McIlwain
*Secretary of General Services – Atif Chaudhry
*Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene – Meena Seshamani
*Secretary of Housing and Community Development – [[Jacob R. Day]]
*Secretary of Human Resources – Rafael López
*Secretary of Information Technology – Katie Savage
*Secretary of Juvenile Services – [[Vincent Schiraldi]]
*Secretary of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation – [[Portia Wu]]
*Secretary of Natural Resources – Josh Kurtz
*Secretary of Planning – Rebecca Flora
*Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services – Carolyn Scruggs
*Secretary of State Police (commanding officer of the [[Maryland State Police]]) – Roland Butler
*Secretary of Transportation – [[Paul Wiedefeld]]
*Secretary of Veterans Affairs – [[Anthony Woods]]
*Secretary of Higher Education (head of the Maryland Higher Education Commission) – Sanjay Rai
*Secretary of Service and Civic Innovation - Paul Monteiro<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wood |first1=Pamela |title=Gov. Moore names Paul Monteiro as the first state secretary of service |url=https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-power/state-government/moore-service-secretary-monteiro-3PN36L7QNVD7BOQXAUZQME5TJQ/ |access-date=April 3, 2023 |work=The Baltimore Banner |date=April 3, 2023}}</ref>
*Adjutant General (head of the Maryland Military Department) – [[Janeen L. Birckhead]]

Other members of the governor's staff may be invited to Cabinet meetings as "attendees".<ref name="msa.md.gov cabinet" />

The governor also oversees several sub-cabinets that coordinate the activities of a certain function of state government that involves several state departments or agencies. Currently, these are the [[Base Realignment and Closure]] Subcabinet, BayStat Subcabinet, Chesapeake Bay cabinet, Children's Cabinet, Governor's Subcabinet for International Affairs, Smart Growth Subcabinet, and Workforce Creation Subcabinet.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Subcabinets & Cabinet Councils |url=https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/08conoff/cabinet/html/01list.html |access-date=March 15, 2022 |website=Maryland Manual On-Line}}</ref>

===Other powers and responsibilities===
The governor is the [[commander-in-chief]] of the military forces of the state: the [[United States National Guard|Maryland Army National Guard and Air National Guard]] and the [[Maryland Defense Force]], except when the former of these forces have been [[Federalization of the National Guard|called into federal service]], which the [[President of the United States]] has the authority to do. In times of public emergency, the governor may exercise emergency powers, including the mobilization of these military forces. In the area of criminal justice, the governor may grant [[pardon]]s to criminals, commute the sentences of prisoners, or remit fines and forfeitures imposed on people who have been convicted, jailed, or fined for violations of state laws.

In both these areas, and a variety of others, the governor sits on state and interstate boards and commissions with varying powers. The governor is also obligated to report on the conditions of the state at any time during the year, though this traditionally happens in a "State of the State" address each January at the beginning of the annual General Assembly session.<ref name=origins/>

===The governor's staff===
In addition to the various departments and agencies under gubernatorial control, the governor has an executive administrative staff that assist in coordinating the executive duties. This staff is led by a [[chief of staff]], and includes five offices: Intergovernmental Relations, Legal Counsel, Legislative and Policy, Press, and the Governor's Office in [[Washington, D.C.]] The chief of staff has a number of deputies to assist in running these departments. The governor's staff is appointed and therefore largely exempt from state civil service laws.<ref name=origins/>