Maryland Gov. Wes Moore Directs State Agencies to Prioritize Local News in Ad Spending

On Oct. 16, Gov. Wes Moore signed an executive order directing state agencies to prioritize Maryland news outlets in their advertising spending, setting an “aspirational goal” to spend 50% of agency ad budgets with local outlets covering Maryland communities.

“It is in the state’s best interest to ensure that local, independent community news and media outlets benefit from marketing and advertising contracts paid for with Maryland taxpayer dollars,” said Gov. Moore.

The executive order uses objective criteria to define eligible Maryland news organizations and emphasizes the value of local news outlets to their communities, as well as to the state agencies trying to reach them. Print, digital and broadcast news outlets are eligible, including nonprofit, commercial, and public media.

The order is the result of advocacy by a coalition of local news stakeholders led by Rebecca Snyder, executive director of the MDDC Press Association. Snyder worked closely with lawmakers and the governor to secure the policy. Rebuild Local News helped shape the policy language and worked alongside partners to move it through the legislature and the governor’s office.

Snyder called the order an important step in using public policy to strengthen local news as a public good.

“By directing existing resources more intentionally, Maryland is strengthening the systems people rely on for timely, fact-based information,” said Snyder. “It also changes the conversation: sustainable support for local media can be built into everyday government operations.”

Between 2013 and 2023, Maryland lost more than 2,000 newsroom jobs, according to the Medill Local News Initiative. That’s more than two-thirds of the state’s journalists. If implemented successfully, the executive order could provide significant advertising revenue to struggling community news outlets.

Maryland state agencies already spend substantial public dollars on advertising. In the executive order, Gov. Moore noted that the Board of Public Works approved $268 million in marketing and advertising contracts for state agencies in 2025. The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency budgeted $18.9 million this fiscal year for advertising and marketing, and the Department of Health budgeted $1.6 million for a single media campaign with the Maryland Cannabis Administration in the next fiscal year.

A comparable policy in New York City, pioneered by the Center for Community Media at CUNY, redirected $72 million to community media over five years. As a result, San Francisco and Chicago have since adopted similar measures.

“Simply being intentional about where public dollars are spent is smart policy, and requires no increase in the state budget,” said Lori Henson, policy manager at Rebuild Local News. “Local news outlets offer unique value to advertisers, as the most trusted sources of information in communities, especially among the audiences that government most needs to reach. Big Tech giants just don’t provide the same value.”

The executive order closely mirrors the Local News for Maryland Communities Act of 2026, which Gov. Moore vetoed in May after it passed the Legislature with strong bipartisan support. The order is substantially the same as that bill in its 50% figure, its definition of eligible Maryland news organizations, and its exemptions for advertising meant to attract tourism, job recruitment and economic development from outside of Maryland.

The bill would have set aside 50% of ad budgets for local news, while the executive order directs agencies to prioritize local news and sets the percentage as a goal. With the order now in place, Maryland’s local news leaders and advocates are focused on implementation, discussing the steps needed to track agency progress toward that goal and turn policy into measurable results.

Other key advocates for the policy included David Belew, director of development at Baltimore Public Media, and members of the Maryland-Delaware-DC Broadcasters Association, whose membership spans daily and weekly newspapers, digital outlets and broadcast stations. Rebuild Local News President Steven Waldman praised the Maryland coalition’s leadership in securing the executive order.

“This wouldn’t have happened without the leadership of not only Del. Linda Foley and Sen. Jim Rosapepe, but also the indefatigable work of Rebecca Snyder and the MDDC Press Association, as well as Baltimore Public Media and local news outlets that made their voices heard,” said Waldman.

Rebuild Local News has helped refine and develop model laws for government advertising set-asides and transparency requirements, which it now advocates for across the country. New Jersey legislators are currently weighing the set-aside approach with companion bills S3744, introduced by Sen. Andrew Zwicker and Sen. Angela McKnight, and A4677, introduced by Majority Leader Assemblyman Louis Greenwald, which would allocate 30% of the state’s advertising budget to local news outlets.