explains.“That requires diversification and strategic focus.” ADDRESSING HEADWINDS WITH STRATEGY AND RESOLVE Like many states, Maryland faces national and global economic uncertainty. Tariff fluctuations, trade tensions, and unpredictable federal funding streams have created planning challenges for businesses seeking certainty. More uniquely, Maryland has experienced significant reductions in the federal workforce—losing more than 15,000 federal jobs— an impact felt more acutely here than in any other state. Additional challenges, including the tragic collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge and the reversal of plans to build the FBI headquarters in Maryland, have further underscored the need for a more diversified economic foundation. Rather than retreat, Maryland is investing forward. WINNING THE DECADE Early in the Moore-Miller Administration, state leadership introduced an economic development roadmap titled Winning the Decade. The strategy acknowledges the state’s historic overreliance on federal dollars while building on sectors where Maryland already holds a comparative advantage. Three industry pillars anchor the roadmap and include Information Technology, Life Sciences, and Aerospace and Defense. Within each pillar, Maryland has identified “Lighthouse Sectors”—focused areas expected to guide long-term prosperity. In Information Technology, the lighthouse focus is Quantum, Artificial Intelligence, and Cyber. Maryland has emerged as a national leader in quantum research and commercialization, bolstered by companies such as IonQ, a publicly traded quantum computing company that originated from research at the University of Maryland, College Park. The Discovery District in College Park is becoming a central node in what the state calls the “Capital of Quantum” ecosystem. In Life Sciences, Maryland is advancing Computational Health—leveraging advanced data analytics to accelerate pharmaceutical development and personalize healthcare. The sector recently saw its largest private capital investment in more than a decade when AstraZeneca announced a $2 billion expansion in Montgomery and Frederick counties, reinforcing global confidence in the state’s biotech infrastructure. 105 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 07, ISSUE 02 MARYLAND DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
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