Political Career
In 2000, the reapportionment of Maryland state legislative districts following the United States Census led to the creation of a new district in Montgomery County, Maryland, called District 14. Montgomery was one of twelve candidates in the Democratic primary election for the district's three house seats. She finished in second place and won the general election for the seat as well.
During her first term, Montgomery served on the Environmental Matters Committee, and served on a commission on sustainable forestry appointed by the Governor. Following her re-election in 2006, she moved to the Health and Government Operations Committee. There, she has worked on a number of issues related to health care, including funding for the Developmental Disabilities Administration, support for veterans with behavioral health needs, and shortages in the state's health care workforce. She has also served in leadership positions in the Women Legislators of Maryland, the caucus of female legislators in the General Assembly.
Inspired by her son who has autism, Montgomery has been an advocate for better services for people with developmental disabilities. She has argued for better access to early intervention service for young children with autism. In 2009, Montgomery worked to limit state budget cuts to mental health programs and services to people with developmental disabilities. These programs were under threat due to a budget deficit in the state related to the late 2000s recession.
In addition to her work on behalf of people with developmental disabilities, Montgomery has been active on health care, good government, and environmental issues. She has been the lead sponsor of a bill that would create a single payer universal health care system in the state of Maryland. In 2008, she introduced a bill giving certain property owners the right to install solar panels despite historic designations on their properties. Montgomery also worked to ensure that touch screen voting machines had a voter-verifiable paper record for use in recounts.
In the 2010 elections, Montgomery challenged incumbent Senator Rona E. Kramer in the Democratic primary and defeated her by less than 200 votes. Herman L. Taylor, Jr. also left the House of Delegates that year, leaving two Delegate seats open in District 14. Craig Zucker and Eric Luedtke won the two open House of Delegates seats in November 2010.
Read more about this topic: Karen S. Montgomery
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