O'Malley: Avoiding layoffs is top priority

Gov. Martin O'Malley said his first priority in using the billions of federal dollars coming from Washington, D.C., will be to avoid laying off 700 state employees.

With President Barack Obama signing the $787 billion economic stimulus bill this week, O'Malley said yesterday his goals will be to avoid layoffs, buttress funding for K-12 and higher education, and restore funding for community colleges.

Initial projections of stimulus aid indicate Maryland will receive $3.8 billion over a 27-month period, with $1.1 billion for education, about $1.3 billion for Medicaid and $900 million for infrastructure projects,...