Candidate for Maryland State Senate - District 11 in 2018 Maryland 2018 General Election.
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Get StartedSince his days on the House Judiciary Committee, Bobby has pushed for stricter use of the ignition interlock system. The interlock requires drivers with histories of drunk driving to breathe into a breathalyzer to activate the ignition on their cars. Research shows that the interlock system prevents drunk driving for the duration of the interlock order. Learn more
Senator Zirkin fought for the passage of Jessica’s Law, which created a 25 year mandatory minimum sentence without the possibility of parole for certain sex offenses. Learn more
Senator Zirkin continues to advocate for victims of domestic violence. He supported an increase in the period of time for a temporary protective order from 30 days to six months if the alleged abuser cannot be found for service. The law eliminates the need for victims to continually return to court pending service. Learn more
Senator Zirkin was the lead sponsor of legislation that enhanced Maryland’s sex offender registry by mandating that convicted sex offenders disclose all ‘Internet identifying information’ to the public. In other words, convicted sex offenders will need to disclose their emails, online aliases, MySpace and Facebook accounts, and chat room names, in addition to physical addresses to authorities. Learn more
Working closely with the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, Bobby helped establish the Lead Poisoning Prevention Act of 2008, which identifies and prevents several sources of harmful toxins in our children’s toys. Learn more
Bobby has successfully changed the direction of Maryland’s policy on Juvenile Justice, replacing large prison-like institutions with small regional facilities. Currently, a private company plans to open another large juvenile facility on the former Bowling Brook property. Bobby believes strongly that allowing this facility to become another large institution would be a huge step backwards and could undo a lot of the hard work he and others have done over the years. Learn more
Senator Zirkin was proud to sponsor important legislation to require that rape kits are preserved once they are collected so evidence of these horrendous crimes are not destroyed. The legislature also allocated more funding to rape crisis centers and increased the penalties for subsequent offenders of rape and sexual assaults. Senator Zirkin and his committee also aided in the passing of a bill to reclassify certain serious sex offenses as rape. Learn more
The legislature passed a bill increasing the penalty for distributing fentanyl – often mixed with heroin and resulting in a high instance of overdose deaths. Learn more
In 2014, with bipartisan support, Senator Zirkin sponsored the landmark bill to decriminalize marijuana, remove the jail sentence for individuals with de minimus amounts, and replace it with a civil fine. Under the bill, all fines would be dedicated to Maryland’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to be used for drug education and treatment programs. Learn more
A TOD uses public transit stations as the foundation for vibrant communities with a mix of commercial, residential and retail development. These kinds of projects will increase ridership and enhance opportunities for pedestrian and bicycle mobility, which in turn creates a “greener” environment, reduces traffic, and provides a viable alternative to urban sprawl. Learn more
Such smart growth strategies as Transit Oriented Development, the practice of creating developments around designated transit areas results in the more efficient use of already developed land, which in turn decreases the need to use further natural resources for development purposes. It also decreases the proliferation of harmful vehicle toxins, as transit oriented developments utilize wide sidewalks, bike trails, and decreased parking facilities to encourage residents to greater utilize mass transit systems. Learn more
On the legislative front, Bobby continues to push for education reform, stressing issues such as class size reduction, new school construction in Northwest Baltimore County, teacher training, teacher salary enhancements, enhanced summer school, and child welfare reform in juvenile services and social services. Learn more
Bobby has taken the lead on creating a hybrid school board in Baltimore County and has worked tirelessly to advance the takeover of the Rosewood land by Stevenson University. Learn more
On the local front, Bobby has fought hard for the construction of a middle school in Owings Mills. A 54 acre parcel of State-owned land in Owings Mills has been set aside for use as a site for a new school. At this point, Baltimore County officials must finalize the deal with the State. Senator Zirkin will continue to press the case with County officials. Learn more
Senator Zirkin is looking forward to next year when Baltimore County will finally have a partially elected (or “hybrid”) school board. The changes in 2018 come from legislation Senator Zirkin introduced to ensure a more democratic process for selecting school board members in Baltimore County. Learn more
During the 2009 session, Bobby helped adopt the Chesapeake Bay Nitrogen Reduction Act, a bill that requires all new homes built within 1,000 feet of the Chesapeake Bay or its tributaries to have nitrogen-removing septic systems to help prevent algae buildup, among other things. Learn more
Throughout the past years, Senator Zirkin has introduced bills that would have banned hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in Maryland. Learn more
A TOD uses public transit stations as the foundation for vibrant communities with a mix of commercial, residential and retail development. These kinds of projects will increase ridership and enhance opportunities for pedestrian and bicycle mobility, which in turn creates a “greener” environment, reduces traffic, and provides a viable alternative to urban sprawl. Learn more
Such smart growth strategies as Transit Oriented Development, the practice of creating developments around designated transit areas results in the more efficient use of already developed land, which in turn decreases the need to use further natural resources for development purposes. It also decreases the proliferation of harmful vehicle toxins, as transit oriented developments utilize wide sidewalks, bike trails, and decreased parking facilities to encourage residents to greater utilize mass transit systems. Learn more
Senator Zirkin introduced Senate Bills 361 and 362 to improve pipeline safety and protect landowner rights. SB 361 would have required Columbia Gas to comply with all federal regulations regarding gas pipeline safety inspections, and SB 362 would have allowed fines to be imposed against Columbia Gas in the amount of $100,000 for each day they failed to have the pipeline inspected as required under federal law. Both bills were heard in the Senate Finance Committee and unfortunately were not brought to a vote. Senator Zirkin, working with citizens in Baltimore and Howard County, will continue to fight to ensure safety in compliance with the law. Learn more
Another bill expanded the duties of the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit of the Office of the Attorney General to include the monitoring of any residential facility licensed by the Department of Juvenile Services. Learn more
He supported the expansion of the protective order to include the removal of firearms from the abuser’s home. Learn more
Working closely with the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, Bobby helped establish the Lead Poisoning Prevention Act of 2008, which identifies and prevents several sources of harmful toxins in our children’s toys. Learn more
Another bill expanded the duties of the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit of the Office of the Attorney General to include the monitoring of any residential facility licensed by the Department of Juvenile Services. Learn more
Senator Zirkin fought for the passage of Jessica’s Law, which created a 25 year mandatory minimum sentence without the possibility of parole for certain sex offenses. Learn more
Senator Zirkin was the lead sponsor of legislation that enhanced Maryland’s sex offender registry by mandating that convicted sex offenders disclose all ‘Internet identifying information’ to the public. In other words, convicted sex offenders will need to disclose their emails, online aliases, MySpace and Facebook accounts, and chat room names, in addition to physical addresses to authorities. Learn more
The legislature passed a bill increasing the penalty for distributing fentanyl – often mixed with heroin and resulting in a high instance of overdose deaths. Learn more
During his first year as a Senator, Bobby helped enact several bills which underscore his advocacy for juveniles in Maryland. One such bill established the “Maryland Rising” mentoring program for children who have spent at least 30 days in a committed placement. Learn more
Bobby has taken the lead on creating a hybrid school board in Baltimore County and has worked tirelessly to advance the takeover of the Rosewood land by Stevenson University. Learn more
During the 2009 session, Bobby helped adopt the Chesapeake Bay Nitrogen Reduction Act, a bill that requires all new homes built within 1,000 feet of the Chesapeake Bay or its tributaries to have nitrogen-removing septic systems to help prevent algae buildup, among other things. Learn more
Senator Zirkin continued his advocacy for juveniles by passing legislation that requires a Statement of Need for developing, operating, establishing, relocating, or expanding any residential child care program. Learn more
He supported the expansion of the protective order to include the removal of firearms from the abuser’s home. Learn more
Senator Zirkin is looking forward to next year when Baltimore County will finally have a partially elected (or “hybrid”) school board. The changes in 2018 come from legislation Senator Zirkin introduced to ensure a more democratic process for selecting school board members in Baltimore County. Learn more
In 2014, with bipartisan support, Senator Zirkin sponsored the landmark bill to decriminalize marijuana, remove the jail sentence for individuals with de minimus amounts, and replace it with a civil fine. Under the bill, all fines would be dedicated to Maryland’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to be used for drug education and treatment programs. Learn more
Senator Zirkin was proud to sponsor important legislation to require that rape kits are preserved once they are collected so evidence of these horrendous crimes are not destroyed. The legislature also allocated more funding to rape crisis centers and increased the penalties for subsequent offenders of rape and sexual assaults. Senator Zirkin and his committee also aided in the passing of a bill to reclassify certain serious sex offenses as rape. Learn more
Another bill expanded the duties of the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit of the Office of the Attorney General to include the monitoring of any residential facility licensed by the Department of Juvenile Services. Learn more
During his first year as a Senator, Bobby helped enact several bills which underscore his advocacy for juveniles in Maryland. One such bill established the “Maryland Rising” mentoring program for children who have spent at least 30 days in a committed placement. Learn more
Senator Zirkin openly advocates for adoption of the successful Missouri Model of delivering services to delinquent youth in Maryland. This model calls for small regional facilities that treat youth outside of their homes with intense drug treatment, educational services, and counseling for mental health and family issues. Learn more
Senator Zirkin continued his advocacy for juveniles by passing legislation that requires a Statement of Need for developing, operating, establishing, relocating, or expanding any residential child care program. Learn more
Senator Zirkin spoke against the computer services tax and argued that, for legal and economic reasons, it was bad policy for Maryland. Because that tax remained in the final bill, Senator Zirkin voted against the bill on the Senate floor. Learn more
View your personalized ballot, check your voter registration, make a plan to vote, and research every name and measure on the ballot with BallotReady.