ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland's House Speaker is urging the state's governor to settle a lawsuit involving four historically black colleges for $577 million.
House Speaker Adrienne Jones sent a letter this week to Gov. Larry Hogan, exhorting him to end what she described as "a stain on the national reputation of Maryland's higher education system." She urged him to accept an amount recommended by an attorney representing the state's four HBCUs to settle the 13-year-old lawsuit over disparities in programs.
Last month, an attorney for Hogan made what he described as a "final offer" of $200 million to settle.
Hogan responded in a letter Wednesday to Jones that he's worked to fund HBCUs at historically high levels for years, and added the $200 million offer is double an offer made last year.
