MRA in the News

• Maryland Retailers Association Announce Winners of Tax-Free Week Scholarship Contest

  Monday, October 19th, 2020

  Comptroller Peter Franchot joined Maryland Retailers Association President Cailey Locklair to announce the winners of this year’s Shop Maryland Tax-Free Week scholarship contest, which this year asked Maryland students to explain how they helped a business during the COVID-19 pandemic. Members with the Maryland Retailers Association… Read More

• Unlike most of the country, Maryland consumers can’t purchase alcohol at grocery stores. That may change soon.

  Monday, October 5th, 2020

  Proponents of reforming Maryland’s beverage alcohol laws are optimistic that next year the Free State will join the majority of the country in granting grocery stores and chain stores the freedom to sell beer, wine and maybe even liquor. Forty-seven states and D.C. allow… Read More

• Restaurants Prepare for Statewide Styrofoam Ban

  Monday, October 5th, 2020

  Several new laws are now in effect across the state: One of the laws is a statewide ban on polystyrene in Maryland, the first of its kind in the nation. The styrofoam ban was supposed to go into effect July 1, but because of… Read More

• Industry Experts Fear MD Styrofoam Ban Will Further Hurt Restaurants Amid Pandemic

  Tuesday, September 29th, 2020

  This week Maryland will become the first state in the country to ban styrofoam food containers. Lawmakers passed this last year, worried about polystyrene’s impacts on the environment and Maryland waterways and wildlife. After delays due to COVID-19, the ban takes effect this Thursday.… Read More

• Maryland Restaurants Brace for Styrofoam Ban to Begin Thursday

  Tuesday, September 29th, 2020

  Restaurants in Maryland are bracing themselves as the state’s styrofoam ban is set to take effect on Thursday. Maryland’s ban, which passed last March, aims to cut back on polystyrene’s harmful impact on the environment and state’s waterways and wildlife. The ban includes items such as cups, plates, carryout containers and… Read More

• Howard County Chamber of Commerce President Optimistic About the Numbers in the Latest US Jobs Report

  Tuesday, September 8th, 2020

  Howard County Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Leonardo McClarty said the numbers in the federal government’s latest jobs report are both “favorable and encouraging” and that he expects Maryland’s economy to improve as the state enters the final stage of its coronavirus recovery… Read More

• Maryland Adds 53,900 Jobs in July; Unemployment Drops to 7.6%

  Monday, August 24th, 2020

  Maryland added 53,900 jobs in July and the state’s unemployment rate dropped from 8% to 7.6%, according to preliminary data released by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday morning. The state added 68,300 jobs in June. The national unemployment rate is at 10.2%.… Read More

• Shop Maryland Tax Free Week Set to Begin August 9

  Sunday, August 9th, 2020

  Beginning Sunday, August 9, Marylanders will be able to take advantage of Shop Maryland Tax-Free Week. Comptroller Peter Franchot says that the week is annually one of his favorites of the year as residents can experience big savings, scholarship opportunities for college and trade… Read More

• Maryland Bankruptcies Continue to Climb During Pandemic

  Friday, August 7th, 2020

  More than 7,200 of Maryland’s businesses have filed for bankruptcy this year, according to the latest data from the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI), which covers the months of January through July. Of those businesses 73% (5,274) filed for Chapter 7 relief (liquidation) and 26%… Read More

• Shop Local, Save Money

  Friday, August 7th, 2020

  Shop Maryland Tax-Free Week starts on Sunday, August 9 and runs through Saturday, August 15. Maryland Retailers Association President Cailey Locklair appeared as a guest on the Comptroller’s podcast Revenews about how important the week is for businesses coping with the impacts of Covid-19, and… Read More