MEDA Event: 2018 Economic Development Day in Annapolis

Thomas “Mac” Middleton is a lifelong Charles County resident, a farmer, husband, father of three, proud grandfather, and a strong believer in public service.

Born in September 1945 in La Plata, Md., Mac grew up in a large family – one of fourteen. He graduated from Charles County Community College in 1966, then earned a bachelors of science degree from Mt. St. Mary’s College in 1968. He served in U.S. Army Intelligence from 1968 to 1971. Returning from the army, he has worked on his family farm – Cedar Hill Farm – and remained active in the community ever since.

Mac is the Maryland General Assembly’s only full-time farmer. As a farmer, Mac knows the challenges faced by all small business owners. He also recognizes the challenges in retaining Charles County’s rural atmosphere, working to preserve our quality of life.

Mac and his wife Joan are strong supporters of public education. All three of their children – Kelly, Brooke and Bret – attended and graduated from Charles County public schools. All three have graduated from Maryland colleges or universities. Joan works for the College of Southern Maryland in La Plata. On the State level, Mac has developed a reputation as a strong supporter of Maryland’s higher education institutions.

Mac has served the people of Charles County for years. As a member then as chairman of the Charles County Planning Commission from 1978 to 1985, Mac worked for better management of growth in the county. Elected in 1986 as president of the Charles County Commissioners, Mac worked to improve county government services, education, and growth management. He helped steer the county through tough fiscal times during the last recession, ultimately improving the county’s bond rating – a reflection of his fiscally conservative management style.

After Charles County voters elected him to the Maryland Senate in 1994, Mac has quickly become a rising star. After only three years in the Senate, he was named chairman of the Senate Capital Budget Subcommittee, a very rare honor for a freshman senator. He was considered an even-handed, fiscally conservative leader on the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee. Recognized as a fair-minded and responsible legislator, he was named as co-chair of the Senate Legislative Ethics Committee. In 2003, he continued his climb in the Senate leadership, being named chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, a challenging but influential post. He is also a member of the Legislative Policy Committee, the Spending Affordability Committee, the Executive Nominations Committee, and the Senate Rules Committee. He is co-chair of the Committee on Agricultural Preservation and Open Space.

Mac also serves on the Board of Trustees for the Maryland Historical Trust and the Maryland Tourism Council, Special Committee on State Employee Rights and Protections, Senate Chair, Joint Legislative Task Force on Small-Group Market Health Insurance, Joint Oversight Committee on the Department of Juvenile Services, Joint Committee on the Selection of the State Treasurer, Joint Legislative Task Force on Universal Access to Quality and Affordable Health Care, National Conference of State Legislatures Agriculture & Rural Development Committee, Environment and Energy Committee, Chesapeake Bay Commission, Task Force on Health Care Access and Reimbursement, and Southern States Energy Board.

Kumar Barve was the first Indian American elected to serve in a state legislature in United States history. He has represented a Montgomery County district in the Maryland House of Delegates since 1990. He is now running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Maryland’s 8th Congressional district which encompasses parts of Montgomery, Frederick and Carroll Counties.

Barve has been in legislative leadership for much of his career, serving as House Majority Leader from 2003-2014 and now as Chairman of the House Environment and Transportation Committee. His committee has oversight of the environment, land use, state ethics and transportation policy.

As Majority Leader, Barve was the floor leader for the Democratic Party and a senior member of the fiscal leadership in the House. He helped guide policies that resulted in balanced budgets and the maintenance of the state’s Triple-A bond rating.

Barve’s groundbreaking legislative career has been highlighted by achievements in health care, technology and the environment. He was a primary architect of Maryland’s 1993 landmark reform of health insurance and was the prime sponsor of a later law that allowed patients to use physicians outside of their HMO network. As Chairman of a Technology Subcommittee, Barve’s work led to the creation of Maryland’s highly successful Technology Development Corporation, the state’s technology tuition assistance program and the early “e-commerce’ Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act which served as a guidepost for consumer protection in the then nascent world of online transactions. More recently, Barve’s environmental efforts resulted in a state moratorium on fracking and a revision to the state’s stormwater management law.

Barve’s achievements have been recognized by groups as diverse as the Montgomery County Medical Society, the Maryland Association of Non-profit Organizations and the Technology Council of Maryland. His re-election campaigns have been endorsed by the Sierra Club, the AFL-CIO, the Maryland State Education Association, Progressive Maryland and the Washington Post.

Barve, an accountant, also serves as the Chief Financial Officer of an environmental management company in Rockville, Maryland.

Kumar grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland and attended Montgomery County Public Schools before graduating from Georgetown University. He lives in Rockville, Maryland with his wife, Maureen Quinn, who serves as a Commissioner on the Maryland Worker’s Compensation Commission.

Secretary Mike Gill is a business leader with four decades of experience as an entrepreneur, a technology executive, an investment banker, and a public servant.

​He was tapped by Governor Larry Hogan to lead the Maryland Department of Commerce (formerly the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development)​ in January 2015. Prior to his appointment, Mike Gill led Evergreen Advisors, an investment bank, as chairman and principal. Previously, Gill founded Hoyt Capital, an investment and advisory firm serving start​ups and growth companies. Mr. Gill was also a founder of First Page, which was acquired by Metrocall; served as chairman of Curtis Engine, a Baltimore power generator company; and was chairman of Bluefire Security Technologies, a mobile cybersecurity developer, from 2006 to 2008. In 1984, Gill founded AMERICOM, a Baltimore-based provider of cellular products and services to businesses in the area. Under Gill’s leadership, AMERICOM expanded nationwide with more than 1,200 team members. In 2000, it was acquired by Solectron. He started his career with IBM and held a number of positions in sales and marketing. He then became Director of Data Systems in the mid-Atlantic region for Ernst & Young.

Gill served on the University System of Maryland Board of Regents from 2004 to 2009, heading the audit committee and technology transfer and commercialization workgroup. His past and present board memberships also include the Calvert Hall Board of Trustees, Baltimore County
Economic Development Commission, St. Joseph’s Medical Center, Bay National Bank, and Towson University of Board of Visitors. He is also a member of the President’s Advisory Board at Clemson University.

Gill earned his B.S. in business administration from Towson University in 1974 after first attending Clemson University on a baseball scholarship. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree by Towson University in 1996.