A service of Salisbury University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Governor O'Malley Would Veto Chicken Tax

official photo

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley says he will veto the chicken tax.

That’s a 5-cent per bird tax being proposed in the state legislature.

The Democrat made his remarks during the annual Taste of Maryland dinner and were reported on Twitter by the Maryland Department of Agriculture.

The Salisbury Daily Times reports that his press secretary Nina Smith issued a statement saying that the governor did not feel the chicken tax would actually strike a balance between the needs of the bay and the needs of the agriculture industry.

The Poultry Fair Share Act was introduced by two Montgomery Democrats in the state legislature.

It would have required poultry companies such as Perdue to pay a tax on all chickens deliver to growers in Maryland.

That money would have been used for cover crop programs where chicken manure is used.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.