The Gazette
C COMMUNITY OMMUNITY NE N NEWS EWS www.gazette.net
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Thursday, December 5, 2013
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Page A-4
County Council approves minimum wage increase Amended legislation to take effect over four years instead of three n
“This small change over four years isn’t going to end poverty. We know that this small raise does give people hope.”
BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
Minimum wage workers in Prince George’s County will be taking home some extra cash over the next four years after the County Council approved a $4.25 increase to minimum wage over four years. The council unanimously approved on Nov. 27 the legislation, which will take effect starting in October, with the minimum wage increasing from $7.25 to $8.40. Subsequent increases will occur in 2015, 2016 and 2017 to $9.55, $10.75 and $11.50 respectively. “This small change over four years isn’t going to end poverty,” said County
County Council Chairwoman Andrea Harrison (D-Dist. 5) of Springdale Council Chairwoman Andrea Harrison (D-Dist. 5) of Springdale. “We know that this small raise does give people hope.” The county approved the increase after Montgomery Council voted Nov. 26 to increase its minimum wage at the
same rates. Originally, Prince George’s County, Montgomery County and Washington, D.C., all planned to increase their wages over three years, but Montgomery County amended its legislation, so Prince George’s County followed suit. Harrison said the District’s Council will have an initial vote on its minimum wage legislation on Dec. 3. Councilman Mel Franklin (D-Dist. 9) of Upper Marlboro said the amendments were to insure that the wage increases were a regional decision to cut back on businesses fleeing to closer counties with lower wages. The decision to remove requirements to adjust the wage for inflation were made to make the legislation in line with Montgomery Council’s amended legislation, he said. Franklin said that at some point the county or state would have to tackle increasing minimum wage consistently to
keep up with inflation. There were concerns among business owners that the higher wages would negatively impact their facilities, forcing firings or reductions in staff of new facilities, but Franklin said more money in the pockets of employees means more money in the pockets of consumers. “That revenue will circulate back into the economy,” he said. Bowie City Councilman Todd Turner (at-large) said the minimum wage increase would be beneficial to Bowie residents, moving minimum wage workers closer to a living wage, meaning they can afford basic needs without having to have a second job. Some businesses may hire less due to the increased wages, but Turner said the increased wages will make it easier for families to stay in the region and businesses would have a good pool of workers to pull from after adjusting to
the increases. “This is the kind of regional cooperation that will move the region forward,” Turner said. “It is a tremendous decision for working families in Bowie.” The minimum wage increase legislation will now go to County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D), who has 10 days to sign or veto the legislation. Baker has been on the record supporting a statewide solution to increase minimum wages. The county executive supports an increase to minimum wages, but an increase that creates a level playing field, said Barry Hudson, senior policy advisor and manager of communications for the Office of the County Executive. “His interest is making sure we stay competitive in the region bringing jobs to families in Prince George’s County,” Hudson said. ccook@gazette.net
Whitehall, Beacon Heights to battle in Bowl Community’s help
sought in search for postal worker’s killer
Bowie squad advances to face Riverdale school in science competition
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BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
Khalil Greene and his Whitehall Elementary Science Bowl team is on a mission this year. “We are going to take home the gold,” said the 11-year-old Bowie resident. Bowie’s Whitehall Elementary continued on its quest for the championship Tuesday by defeating North Forestville 280 to 125 in a quarterfinal round game that started out with lead changes between both teams before Whitehall pulled away. Each year, Prince George’s County public schools compete in the Science Bowl, setting 40 elementary schools and 16 middle schools against each other in an academic competition where students answers questions from different categories. Each question is worth five to 25 points based on its difficulty and each team starts with 50 points. Fifth-grade teacher Dawn Wine, one of Whitehall’s sponsors, said she was proud of the student’s performance. Whitehall consisted of six players, three of whom are alternates and participate in the team’s practice games. Greene, Samantha Roberts, 9, and 10-year-old Gabe Sopkowicz, all of Bowie, were the three participants for the team on Tuesday. “They did great,” Wine said. “I’m very proud. We wouldn’t have gotten here if it wasn’t for all of the team members.” Whitehall also defeated Lanhambased Magnolia Elementary 205 to 195, and moves on to play Riverdale’s Beacon Heights Elementary on Feb. 11. North Forestville defeated its first opponent, Hyattsville-based Woodridge
Officials offering up to $125,000 for arrest and indictment of suspect
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BY CHASE COOK STAFF WRITER
GREG DOHLER/THE GAZETTE
Whitehall Elementary School students Gabe Sopkowicz, 10, Samantha Roberts, 9, and Khalil Greene, 11, compete Tuesday in the Science Bowl competition at the Bonnie F. Johns Educational Media Center in Landover. Elementary, 285 to 75, which was the largest margin of victory in the three games played Tuesday. “[North Forestville] did great,” said Wendi LaMond, the school’s science bowl coach and sponsor. LaMond has been coaching Science Bowl teams since 2004, and she said whether teams win or lose, it is an educational experience for everybody. North Forestville’s team consisted of Forestville residents Torrell Grant, 12, and Jocelyn Mundy, 11 and District Heights residents Simone Pruden, 10, and Anayah Green, 11. “It teaches them that academics can be competitive, not just sports,” LaMond said. “And it teaches them a lot of teamwork.” Dave Zahren, the show’s host, said
Tuesday’s group of contestants were active and engaged in the competition. Zahren mentioned Khalil as a great help to his team because he offered up answers to Whitehall’s captain, Samantha, on just about every question. “I like to see the kids excited about science literacy,” Zahren said. “They really practiced.” Woodridge’s science bowl captain, Terrell Maxwell, 12, of Greenbelt, said he learned a lot during the experience. He and his other teammates, who are all going into middle school next year, said they wanted to return to Science Bowl. “It was fun,” Terrell said. “We made a couple of mistakes … I think we did a great job.” ccook@gazette.net
Prince George’s County police canvassed the route of slain 26-year-old U.S. Postal worker Tyson Barnette, who was killed recently in Glenarden and are asking for residents’ help in the search for information. Barnette, an Upper Marlboro resident, was found with apparent gunshot wounds at about 7:20 p.m. Nov. 23 after police responded to the 1600 block of Reed Street for the report of a shooting, said Lt. William Alexander, a county police spokesman. Barnette was delivering mail when he was shot, Alexander said. Police have canvassed the area a few times, most recently on Saturday retracing Barnette’s route the day he was killed. The investigation will continue with the hope that someone might come forward with additional information, Alexander said. “Undoubtedly in any of these kinds of crimes, someone in the area saw something or knows something,” Alexander
said. “It is often cases like these that need that information to be broken open.” County police are working on the investigation with the U.S. Postal Service Inspection Agency, which is tasked with the safety and security of postal workers, said Frank Schissler, U.S. Postal Service inspector and spokesman. The USPS has offered up to a $100,000 award, in addition to a county police award of up to $25,000, for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case. Officials hope the awards will encourage someone with information to come forward, Schissler said. People with information are asked to call the county police tip line, Crime Solvers, at 866411-8477 or the USPS Investigation Unit at 877-876-2455. Both hotlines offer anonymity to callers. Lottie Snowden of Glenarden said she was deeply upset about the postal worker’s death and she hoped investigators would find information soon. She said she didn’t understand why anyone would kill somebody in the relatively quiet neighborhood. “I hope they find who did it,” she said. “It makes no sense.” ccook@gazette.net
New service gives county library patrons more download options n
Movies, music are now available for free BY JEFFREY LYLES STAFF WRITER
Checking out digital media from the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System has now become a little easier. Library patrons are now able to make use of hoopla digital — a service that allows users free access to movies, music and audiobooks on their home computers or mobile devices. The library system previously had limited access to the items, but hoopla digital provides more options.
Kathleen Teaze, county library system director, said the service is paid for based on usage, estimating that hoopla would cost up to $20,000 per year. Teaze said since the service’s debut on Nov. 17, more than a thousand people have registered, and 2,500 items have been downloaded. “It’s been really popular,” said Robin Jacobsen, outreach manager for the county library system. “It’s been more popular than we thought. It’s so easy to use that people are finding it a good first step for those who haven’t downloaded books before, and it’s free.” Patrons download the software application, entering their
library card number, and can begin using the service immediately. Jacobsen said one of the reasons for the service expansion was the limited lifespan of physical discs. “They get scratched or lost, and that’s not an issue here,” she said. “Downloadable services like this will continue to grow and be flexible regardless of the platform. People are downloading into their computers, phones and laptops and lots of different ways to view the material.” Out of about 422,600 library cardholders and 4.5 million total checkouts last year, about 214,000 were from e-books, audio books, mp3s and movies, Jacobsen said.
“We’re not cutting back on those things,” Teaze said referring to CDs and DVDs. “Hoopla offers services we don’t normally buy such as TV programs, not the newer popular stuff that comes out, but long-term DVDs are probably on their way out as a medium because streaming is the thing that’s coming.” Kathryn Rabjohns of Clinton said while she has not used hoopla yet, she uses audio books on a weekly basis, but added she sees the value of the service. “I think having everything streaming is really important just because it’s the technology everyone is using,” she said. jlyles@gazette.net
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Prince George’s County library patrons are now able to use the download service, hoopla digital, to borrow movies, music, audio books and e-books for use on their computers and mobile devices.