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Maryland Cuts Red Tape
A new Web site run by the state of Maryland makes it easier and faster to determine which permits and licenses you'll need.

By Karim Khan

The Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED) recently launched an expanded Business License Information System (BLIS) Web site that features information on state and county licensing information to help business owners determine which state permits and licenses are required to operate their businesses. BLIS, which won a national award from the U.S. Small Business Administration for its innovative approach to assisting business owners, was originally created in 1998 to serve as a one-stop shop of detailed information on state permitting and licensing.

"Creating an environment that actively supports Maryland's business community, particularly small and minority businesses, is a priority for this administration," says Governor Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. "This new expanded Web site gives businesses permitting and licensing information along with assistance they need to grow and create jobs in communities across the state. It is one way of cutting through unnecessary bureaucracy and getting out the message that ÔMaryland means business.'"

The new expanded BLIS Web site features small business assistance information, as well as case studies outlining step-by-step approval needed for some of the most common business types in Maryland. A comprehensive listing of county-issued permits and licenses, with Internet links, is another new feature of the Web site. The BLIS Web site is the only one in Maryland where permitting and licensing information from all state and county agencies is presented to the public. The site also provides links to and information about the Governor's Office of Business Advocacy and Small Business Assistance (GOBA), the U.S. Small Business Administration, and Small Business Development Centers located across the state.

"One of the greatest challenges for any business owner is finding a way through the myriad licenses and permits that are required to operate a business," says Lt. Governor Michael S. Steele. "BLIS is designed to help business owners get through this bureaucracy in the most efficient and timely manner possible. Regulatory reform, identifying duplicative and outdated regulatory programs, and improving services to Maryland's business community are priorities of the Ehrlich/Steele Administration."

The expanded BLIS Web site, found at www.blis.state.md.us, is also a part of Gov. Ehrlich's initiative to streamline and improve regulations affecting Maryland's business community. For example, Ehrlich established a Regulatory Relief Center in DBED to work with government agencies and Maryland businesses to resolve regulatory and resolve policy issues such as environmental controls and insurance regulations.

HARFORD COUNTY GETS RELOCATION, CONSOLIDATION

Worthington Armstrong Venture Enterprises (WAVE) recently relocated its operations in Sparrows Point, MD and Malvern, PA to Perryman, MD, in Harford County. The move comes as a result of the joint efforts made by the state and county government agencies to secure the property and financing needed to retain the manufacturing facility in Maryland.

WAVE is a light assembly/manufacturing company that is a partnership between Worthington and Armstrong World Industries. WAVE produces the metal ceiling grids that can be combined with the Armstrong ceiling tiles as a package or sold individually. WAVE will be leasing approximately 300,000 square feet in an existing structure and will be investing over $9 million in the project.

A $300,000 conditional loan to support the project improvements and up to a $200,000 grant to support electrical infrastructure to the project site have been approved from DBED's Maryland Economic Development Assistance Fund (MEDAF). In addition, a $50,000 workforce grant has also been approved for the project. Harford County will grant Enterprise Zone Tax Credits, Technical Training Grant, and Transportation Services along with other incentives.

WAVE President Mike George says the company chose the site because the building fit its requirements, had a central location and because of the state incentives offered. Total investment in Harford County will be over $35 million, employing more than 200 people. Operations start-up at the facility is scheduled for October or November 2004 with a grand opening planned for Spring 2005.

Meanwhile, Oldcastle Precast, Inc., a major producer of precast concrete building products, broke ground last year for a new 110,000-square-foot manufacturing plant on a 100-acre site Edgewood, MD, also in Harford County. The company's Baltimore regional operations will be housed in a new $12 million state-of-the-art plant when construction is completed on the project in March 2003 in the county's Edgewood-Joppa Enterprise Zone. The company will employ approximately 150 people and will supply locations from New York to Virginia.

MANUFACTURING GROWING IN ALLEGANY COUNTY

American Woodmark corporation, a leading manufacturer of cabinets for the new home construction and remodeling industry, announced recently that it will build a new manufacturing facility in Barton Business Park in Allegany County, MD. The project is expected to create approximately 500 jobs in Allegany County during the next five years. "We looked at several locations for our newest manufacturing facility, and chose Allegany County over several other equally competitive locations because the community offers an economically competitive environment, is strategically located, and will provide a high-quality way of life for our employees," says Jake Gosa, President and CEO, American Woodmark Corporation.

American Woodmark, the first tenant in the newly developed park, plans to construct a 250,000-square-foot manufacturing facility and invest approximately $12 million in the project site.

The state will assist with land acquisition, workforce training, and recruitment through the MEDAF and other programs. Allegany County is providing assistance with infrastructure requirements for the project.

MARYLAND FAST FACTS

• Population (2002): 5,458,137
• Largest Cities (2002): Baltimore, 651,154; Frederick, 52,767; Gaithersburg, 52,613; Bowie, 50,269; Rockville, 47,388
• Targeted Industries: Advanced technology, information assurance (information security, signals intelligence), aerospace and defense (electronics, communications and control systems), biosciences, pharmaceutics/therapeutics (drug discovery and delivery), medical devices and diagnostics, biodefense (vaccines, biosensors), finance and insurance, manufacturing and distribution
• Key Incentives: Economic Development Opportunities Fund (Sunny Day Fund); Smart Growth Economic Development Infrastructure Fund (One Maryland); Maryland Economic Adjustment Fund (MEAF); The Partnership for Workforce Quality (PWQ); Maryland Community Colleges' Business Training Network (MCCBTN); Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Program (MATP); Maryland Industrial Training Program (MITP)