Former Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp helped unveil her official portrait Friday. The portrait will be installed in the Treasury Building. Photo by Bryan P. Sears.
The portrait of a pioneer in Maryland politics, painted by a pioneer in the art world will soon be installed in the Maryland Treasury.
The portrait of former Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp was unveiled Friday during a reception in Annapolis. Kopp said artist Simmie Knox was the only choice after she saw his portrait of her predecessor, Richard Dixon.
“You look at it and you think you can hear Richard Dixon talking,” Kopp said Friday. “It is Richard, and Simmie Knox is the man who painted that.”
Kopp, now 81, retired in 2021 after two decades as treasurer, part of 50 years in government service that began as a legislative staffer. In 1974, she was elected to the House of Delegates representing a Montgomery County district. She served in the House for nearly 30 years.
She was the first woman in any state legislature to give birth to a child while in office. Kopp was also the first woman to hold the position of House speaker pro tem, second only to the Speaker of the House. She was the second woman to serve as state treasurer, and the third longest-serving treasurer in Maryland history.
Knox, a native of Alabama, began his career teaching at what was then known as Bowie State College. He lives and works in Silver Spring.
He was the first Black artist to paint a presidential portrait: His paintings of former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary are installed in the White House.
Knox has also painted a number of other Maryland officials, including former House Appropriations Chair Howard “Pete” Rawlings and former Sen. Clarence Blount. His portrait of Sen. Verda Welcome, the first Black woman in the Maryland House of Delegates and the first in the United States to become a state senator, currently hangs in the Senate chamber.
He has also painted portraits of other officials including a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, members of congress, a mayor of New York City and other political leaders, celebrities and more.
The Kopp portrait, valued at $45,495, was paid for by the state treasurer’s office, according to a spokesperson.
Moore seeks ‘efficiencies,’ expands role of performance office
Gov. Wes Moore (D) announced Friday his administration will look for ways to make government services more efficient and save taxpayers money as part of an effort to tackle the looming budget shortfall.
Moore said he will initially focus on finding savings in real estate, fleet management and procurement.
“The details are in the nerdy,” Moore said Friday. “The savings are in the nerdy.”
How much savings can be found is unclear. Moore will include a target of $50 million that will be part of his plan to attack a $3 billion deficit in the fiscal 2026 budget.
The money is not in hand and specific savings have yet to be identified. Administration officials said efforts are underway to identify potential cost savings before the fiscal year beings in July.
Moore will announce his budget on Wednesday. As the General Assembly convened this week, the governor said his spending plan included $2 billion in cuts and efficiencies in information technology and fleet management.
In October, the Board of Public Works approved a contract with Boston Consulting Group. The company will work with state officials to identify up to $75 million in savings.
The company will be paid an initial $100,000 plus an additional 20% of any savings realized by the state: If the consultant can find $75 million in savings, the state will pay it $15 million.
The administration will also bring in Elisabeth Sachs to assist the effort as the new director of government modernization. Sachs worked for Baltimore County for the last six years, first as director of government reform and strategic initiatives and then as deputy county administrative officer for health and community services.
Moore’s announcement was welcomed by Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City).
“I would say, first and foremost, I think that’s absolutely the right direction,” Ferguson said. “We should be looking for efficiencies all the time. I haven’t seen the specific details of this particular process, how it will function, and so we’ll have to review it as we get the details.
“I appreciate the impetus to look for additional efficiencies,” he said. “We have to be doing that this year, and part of the legislative budget process will be continuing to find places where we can make government more effective and efficient and therefore realize some savings.”
Having the ‘high bar’ conversation
Ferguson and Moore have said for months they have a high bar for increasing taxes this year to deal with the budget.
During a meeting with reporters Friday, Ferguson was again asked to define the threshold for increased taxes. And he again deferred to define what has so far been more of a “know it when you see it” standard.
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“I think we’re at the beginning of a bigger conversation,” Ferguson said. “We are laying out the priorities of what’s most important for each individual chamber, for the administration, and we’re setting forth the important standards that will be kind of the context of the debate for the next 90 days.”
Ferguson was asked about the hesitance in defining the term and having a “tough conversation” with Maryland residents who want to understand what might trigger a tax hike.
“I think that’s what this session, what we will be doing, is having that conversation,” Ferguson said.
The Senate leader acknowledged that the budget projections are worse than when the legislature finished the 2024 session.
“”I felt confident that we would be able to sufficiently handle a number of the gaps that existed, with rainy day funds and with cash balances and tightening the belt and doing sort of typical budget maneuvers that allow us to stay within margins,” he said. “This deficit is significantly larger than I expected it to be.”