5 New Year’s resolutions for Maryland’s economy

Maryland is starting the new year off with a dose of reality about its economy.

Three days into 2024, Maryland Comptroller Brooke Lierman released an analysis of the state’s economic health, and it should be required reading for industry and policymakers alike.

The State of the Economy report found some good news. We boast the nation’s highest median household income, the highest education levels and the lowest unemployment rate. Our technology and life sciences ecosystems are relatively strong, with quantum computing, vaccine development, medical technologies and cyber and defense technologies leading the way.

But there are warning signs. Our economic growth and wage growth lag the national average, and we’re experiencing a population outflow to Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina — the same states we compete with for technology and life sciences jobs. Further, declining labor force participation has made it harder for Maryland firms to grow.

Economic growth rates between 2016 and 2023, from Maryland’s 2023 State of the Economy report. (Courtesy Office of the Comptroller)

These findings are similar to a recent University of Baltimore analysis, which found that Maryland’s innovation ecosystem is strong, but lagging behind competitor states.

When I recruited companies to Maryland as the state’s labor secretary and commerce secretary, they always asked the same question: Will you have a pipeline of skilled workers?

We must improve our workforce pipeline, and that means empowering workers who do not pursue four-year degrees to pursue tech and life sciences careers. Here are five New Year’s Resolutions the Moore Administration and General Assembly can pursue as they convene for the 2024 legislative session:

Boost tech apprenticeships. Apprenticeships bridge the gap between employers and young Marylanders eager for work who do not have four-year degrees. The University of Maryland, Baltimore County became the nation’s first university to offer cyber apprenticeships to expand career options for young Marylanders. More Maryland universities should offer certified non-trade apprenticeship programs as an option for students, as should nonprofit entities.

Expand youth apprenticeships. Comptroller Lierman’s report found that too many young people from disadvantaged communities are leaving Maryland. To help reverse this trend, Maryland must expand its youth apprenticeship program for high school students aged 16 and up. Not every high schooler pursues a four-year degree, so let’s encourage them to find work with local businesses, learn valuable skills in IT and biosciences, and earn good money while pursuing a high school degree. They’ll build relationships with local employers, gain transferable skills and be more likely to find a great job in Maryland after high school.

Build a biopharma manufacturing workforce. You don’t have to be a scientist to have a great career in life sciences. One out of every three life sciences job openings in Maryland last year did not require a college degree, making it an exceptional industry for Marylanders from alternative educational backgrounds. Better yet, annual life sciences incomes in our region average more than $139,000 – more than double the average for all industries in Maryland ($68,900).

Biopharma manufacturing will be a fast-growing sector over the next decade as cell and gene therapy companies build new manufacturing centers. A skilled workforce will be one of the first metrics these companies use when deciding whether to build operations in Maryland. Programs like the Maryland Tech Council’s BioHub Maryland equip military veterans and members of disadvantaged communities with skills and training to enter this field and stay in Maryland.

Promote women in STEM. The comptroller’s report found low labor force participation among women, who comprise only one-third of the US STEM workforce. We must make it easier for women to gain STEM skills in high school, when their STEM interest is highest, and improve apprenticeships and mentorships to ease their pathway into rewarding STEM careers.

Do no harm. Improving our economy starts with not harming job creators. Consider the case of Quantum Loophole: This Texas-based company’s proposed data center campus in Frederick would support an estimated 48,000 jobs over 15 years, turning an abandoned industrial site into a 21st-century digital economy campus. Yet, state regulatory agencies have imposed enough regulatory roadblocks that Maryland now risks losing the entire project. These actions discourage technology companies from calling Maryland home and make it harder for Marylanders to find the jobs they need to stay in the state.

Maryland boasts an enviable foundation of innovative employers and a highly educated workforce, but Comptroller Lierman’s report sends a vital message: Expanding Maryland’s economic prosperity requires purposeful action by policymakers in collaboration with industry. If we commit to this path, Maryland will be the destination of choice for the world’s most innovative companies.