Larry Hogan is taking some free punches at former Governor Martin O’Malley, first over the furniture deal and now about O’Malley’s contract with a state vendor. While Comptroller Peter Franchot brought up the issue, it was Hogan who took the opportunity to pile on - again. It’s gonna get ugly.

A key piece of former governor and presidential hopeful Martin O’Malley’s legacy is under scrutiny in Maryland.

The state’s spending board this week put on hold a contract for mapping software, which drove much of the “data-driven” government style that has earned accolades for O’Malley, a Democrat.

The company that won a sole-source, $3.8 million bid to do work for the state back in 2011 while O’Malley was governor and later hired him to give speeches when he left office. O’Malley aides, meanwhile, points out the company first started working for Maryland in the 1970s.

When the company’s contract was up for an extension at the Board of Public Works Wednesday, Comptroller Peter Franchot, also a Democrat, questioned whether there was a quid pro quo deal that benefitted O’Malley.
“I think my concern here is fairly obvious, and I think that any Maryland taxpayer would have that same concern,” Franchot said when the extension vote came up for Environmental System Research Institute, known as ESRI. “Without knowing anything else about this firm or this contract other than what’s in my notes, this has the appearance of blatant quid pro quo.”

The issue will be back before the Bosrd of Punlic Works again on October 7. Get some popcorn supplies ready for that meeting.