CMC Forward Taking Back Local Control. Powering Maryland’s Future.

Maryland Is Falling Behind
Businesses are leaving.
Costs are rising.
Opportunities are shrinking.
Maryland is now ranked near the bottom nationally for business competitiveness.
The future of our economy is being decided right now.

CMC Forward Is the Response

CMC Forward is the Central Maryland Chamber’s pro-business PAC built to:

✔ Elect leaders who support business growth
✔ Restore economic competitiveness
✔ Ensure the business community is no longer ignored

This is how we move from advocacy → action.

Why This Matters

We influence who holds power locally.
We shape decisions before they are made.
We protect the future of business in our region.

2026 Strategy: Where We Win First

County Executive Races
We are targeting leadership in:
Anne Arundel County
Baltimore County
Baltimore City
Harford County
Carroll County
Montgomery County
Howard County
Prince George’s County (pending)
​
These leaders control:
Taxes
Regulations
Workforce development
Infrastructure

Win these seats—and we reshape the business climate immediately.

What Comes Next

After 2026, we expand to:
Pro-business Mayors
Pro-business County Council Members

This builds a long-term pipeline of leadership aligned with business growth.

Become Part of CMC Forward

Founding Investors: Shape the strategy. Influence the outcome.
Strategic Investors: Access decision-makers. Stay ahead.
Business Advocates: Be part of the movement.

Advocacy Wins:

​2025 — The 2.5% Business Services Tax (HB 1554/SB 1045): The broad 2.5% B2B services tax was killed through massive coalition opposition — over 100 Maryland business owners flooded Annapolis on March 12 to testify against it, with nearly 400 registering formal opposition. However, a scaled-down version survived: Governor Moore signed HB 352, applying a narrower 3% tax specifically to data and IT services starting July 1, 2025. So the framing should be: CMC helped kill the broad 2.5% B2B services tax that would have hit all professional services — accounting, consulting, marketing, and more — while a narrower tech-focused version ultimately passed.
2026 — The $25 Minimum Wage Act (HB 1229/SB 886): HB 1229/SB 886 sought to increase the minimum wage to $25 per hour by 2030, while eliminating the tip credit for workers and amending the state constitution. Neither bill passed. NFIB confirmed that small businesses are breathing a sigh of relief that a $25 minimum wage did not pass — and that it would have been a 67% increase from Maryland's current $15/hour floor.


TO DONATE BELOW:
https://secure.anedot.com/cmc-forward-pac/d7b4adca-4f8f-4924-8845-c3ad310809b3


For more information contact.
​[email protected]
Lucinda Ware at [email protected]
Riya Patel at [email protected]