Robert Cassilly (politician)

Robert G. Cassilly (born July 1958) is an American politician who is currently the county executive of Harford County, Maryland. He previously served in the Maryland State Senate from 2015 to 2022, representing District 34.

Early life and education
Cassilly was born in July 1958, in Havre de Grace, Maryland. He was one of twelve children born to Robert R. Cassilly Jr. and Nancy Cassilly.

Cassilly graduated from Bel Air High School in 1976, and later attended Johns Hopkins University, where he was a member of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps and earned a B.A. degree in international relations in 1980. Cassilly later attended the University of Baltimore School of Law, where he earned a J.D. degree cum laude in 1988. While attending the University of Baltimore, he served as a law clerk to Circuit Court Judge Dana M. Levitz and Court of Special Appeals Judge John J. Bishop Jr.

Career
From 1976 to 1978, Cassilly served in the Maryland National Guard. He later served in the 7th Infantry Division of the United States Army from 1980 to 1985. In February 2006, Cassilly was activated by the United States Army and deployed in Iraq, where he served as a senior governance advisor in the Karbala Governorate and as a strategic planner for the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad until 2010. After returning to the United States, Cassilly worked for three years in the United States Department of State, supporting U.S. efforts to counter violent extremists in the Near East region.

Cassilly first got involved in politics in 1992, when he became a member of the Harford County Republican Central Committee. He served in this position until 1997, when he was elected to the Bel Air, Maryland town commission. Cassilly served as the commission's president from 2000 to 2001, and resigned in 2002 after he was elected to the Harford County Council, representing District C in southeastern parts of the county. Cassilly declined to resign from the County Council after being mobilized in February 2006, expressing concern that his resignation "might result in a significant shift of the current balance of interests on the Council in a manner that would not be favorable to the citizens". However, because he did not file to run for re-election before his deployment, he was barred from running for re-election under Department of Defense Directive 1344.10.

In September 2013, Cassilly started his own law firm.

Elections

 * 2014

In September 2013, Cassilly filed to run for Maryland Senate in District 34, seeking to succeed retiring state senator Nancy Jacobs. He ran unopposed in the Republican primary election and defeated Democratic state delegate Mary-Dulany James in the general election. At the same time, his younger brother Andrew Cassilly was elected as state delegate in District 35B and his other brother was re-elected as state's attorney.

Cassilly filed to run for re-election in January 2018. He defeated former state delegate Mary-Dulany James in a tight general election on November 6, 2018, receiving 50.1 percent of the vote to James's 49.7 percent, or by a 189 vote margin out of 48,788 votes cast.
 * 2018

Tenure
Cassilly was sworn into the Maryland Senate on January 14, 2015.

Committee assignments

 * Member, Judicial Proceedings Committee, 2015–2022 (member, work group on COVID-19 & housing, 2020)
 * Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review, 2015–2022
 * Joint Committee on Federal Relations, 2015–2022

Harford County Executive
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{{legend|#E27F7F|50–60%}}

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{{legend|#D72F30|70–80%}}

{{legend|#C21B18|80–90%}} {{legend|#7996E2|Miller}}

{{legend|#A5B0FF|40–50%}}

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{{legend|#584CDE|70–80%}} ]] In April 2021, Cassilly opted not to run for re-election to a third term to the Maryland Senate, instead filing to run for Harford County executive. He defeated rival Billy Boniface in the Republican primary on July 19, 2022, and later defeated Democratic nominee Blane Miller III in the general election on November 8. Cassilly was sworn in as county executive on December 5.

County government infighting
Cassilly's first year as county executive was marked by infighting with the Harford County government, including the County Council, which he has described as "political attacks" by unnamed political entities in the county.

Following his election, Cassilly moved to block newly elected Democratic county councilmember Jacob Bennett from attending the county's inaugural ceremonies, citing a Section 207 of the Harford County Charter, which prevents people with county or state jobs from serving on the county council. In February 2023, Harford County Circuit Court Judge Richard Bernhardt ruled in Cassilly's favor, saying that Bennett could not serve on the county council until he resigned from his position as a middle school science teacher. Following this decision, Cassilly changed the locks on Bennett's office and restricted access to his government email account. In April 2023, the Maryland Supreme Court overturned the lower court ruling, allowing Bennett to take office.

In July 2023, County Councilmember Aaron Penman accused Cassilly of violating Maryland's wiretapping statutes by monitoring communications between Penman, county Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler, former county executive Barry Glassman, and various "targeted citizens". The emails were searched after the county human resources director asked the county Office of Information Technology director to search Penman's email for communications between him and various other officials in county government to determine if there was "any basis to suspect misuse of county funds". Penman had earlier accused Cassilly of misappropriating county funds by transferring $7 million from the county's general fund to the Department of Emergency Management. In a statement to Maryland Matters, Cassilly acknowledged monitoring Penman's emails, but denied any wrongdoing, asserting that county policy allowed for such reviews and attributing his accusations to politics. A criminal investigation was opened into the wiretapping allegations by Harford County State's Attorney Allison Healey, and later turned over to the Office of the Maryland State Prosecutor to avoid conflicts of interest.

In September 2023, Cassilly temporarily blocked county auditor Chrystal Brooks from accessing Workday, a financial reporting program used by the county, a potential violation of the county charter. The restrictions appear to have been placed in response to budget disputes from earlier in his term, including Cassilly's opposition to a new facility for the Harford County Sheriff's Department. Brooks' access to the financial system was restored later in the week.

In late September 2023, Healey threatened to sue Cassilly after he blocked her access to the email account of a "key employee who is on emergency family leave". Cassilly associated the request with the ongoing criminal investigation into Penman's wiretapping allegations and said that she could gain access to the emails if she released a statement denying Cassilly of any wrongdoing in the investigation. Following the threat of a lawsuit, Cassilly granted Healey with access to new emails sent to the employee.

In October 2023, Cassilly sought the removal of Penman from the Harford County Council, arguing that him serving as a councilmember and as a deputy sheriff was a violation of the county charter. County Council President Patrick Vicenti rejected Cassilly's request to unseat Penman, saying that the council did not have the authority to remove him and suggested that Cassilly seek a court order to determine if Penman violated the county charter. In February 2024, Penman field an ethics complaint against Cassilly, alleging that he expedited the approval of a real estate plat submitted on the behalf of his brother, Joseph Cassilly. Cassilly rejected Penman's accusations, saying that his director of administration, Robert McCord, reviewed and signed the plat since it involved his brother, and once again called for the removal of Penman from office.

In March 2024, the Maryland Public Information Act Compliance Board found Cassilly's administration in violation of the Public Information Act after refusing to fulfill a request by Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler to disclose emails connected to a feasibility study conducted on the county's behalf by architectural firm Manns Woodward Studios. In response, Cassilly said that he would not fulfill Gahler's request until the county circuit court ruled on whether the Compliance Board had authority to state whether accessing county servers is illegal.

Crime and policing
During the 2017 legislative session, Cassilly voted against a bill that would give the Attorney General of Maryland the ability to sue the federal government. He also opposed a bill that would give investigators in the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office police powers.

In October 2017, after a man killed three co-workers and critically wounded two others in Edgewood, Maryland, Cassilly introduced a bill to allow judges to sentence people convicted of serial murder or murder of a law enforcement officer to death.

In 2021, Cassilly voted against a bill that would end life without parole sentences for juveniles.

In August 2023, following the murder of Rachel Morin on the Ma and Pa Trail, Cassilly ordered the installation of security cameras along the trail.

Development initiatives
During his county council candidacy in 2002, Cassilly said the council needed "to look at all revenue sources" to address infrastructure needs and should address growth holistically.

In 2003, Cassilly said he opposed a proposal to limit the height of buildings in downtown Bel Air to five stories, expressing concerns that it would have unintended effects on the area.

In 2004, after a gasoline leak at an Exxon station contaminated well water at 225 homes with methyl tert-butyl ether, Cassilly introduced a bill that would place a temporary moratorium on the construction of gas stations in Harford County. The county council unanimously voted to pass the bill in September 2004, and it was signed into law by County Executive James M. Harkins in the same month. In 2005, Cassilly introduced a bill that would ban gas stations near homes with well water systems.

In December 2004, Cassilly voted for a bill placing a 90-day moratorium on senior housing construction, expressing concern with the amount of senior housing development in the county.

In February 2023, Cassilly proposed a six-month moratorium on permits for county warehouse projects. The bill passed by a 6–1 vote and was signed into law on April 18, 2023. In October 2023, Cassilly supported a bill to limit the size of warehouses built in Harford County, which passed the county council in a 5-2 vote.

Education
In 2018, following the Parkland and Great Mills high school shootings, Cassilly supported a bill that would put a school resource officer in every school.

Cassilly opposes the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, saying that he would not raise taxes as county executive to pay for the education reform plan. In his first budget in April 2023, he proposed cutting the county's education by $19 million, which was criticized by the county Superintendent of Schools Sean Bulson as the "worst-case scenario". Cassilly defended these cuts, pointing out that Harford County Public Schools had a $90 million surplus and was due to receive $20 million in funding from the Blueprint. In May 2023, Cassilly and the Harford County school board reached an agreement to increase funding for Harford County Public Schools by $25 million. He signed his budget into law on June 15, 2023.

During his 2024 state of the county address, Cassilly said that he would propose a five percent increase to the county's public schools funding; his fiscal year 2025 budget, unveiled in April 2024, did not include any increase in funding for the county's school system, which he blamed on an unexpected drop in income tax revenues. Cassilly further blamed the state's minimum wage increase and tax policies for the revenue drop and refused to increase county taxes to pay for the five percent increase, citing the $99 million held in reserves by the school board, community college, and public library system.

Government
In 2003, Cassilly introduced a bill that would have created a ballot referendum on whether the Harford County Council should have the ability to hire an auditor to oversee the county's finances. The bill was reintroduced in 2004 and passed by a 4–3 vote but was vetoed by County Executive James M. Harkins.

In 2016, Cassilly opposed provisions in a bill that would require automatic government spending on several Baltimore-targeted programs.

In November 2016, Cassilly said he opposed the Question A referendum in Harford County, which would move the county's property acquisition procedures from the Department of Procurement to the Department of Administration.

Guns
During the 2016 legislative session, Cassilly introduced a bill to remove the "one shot" requirement from firearm safety training courses, arguing that it didn't "do anything to promote weapons safety".

Marijuana
In 2018, Cassilly voted against a bill that would lessen the penalties for carrying an ounce of marijuana, which he said was "too high a threshold". He also opposed a bill that would have created a referendum to legalize recreational marijuana. During the 2019 legislative session, Cassilly introduced a bill to prohibit smoking or consuming marijuana in a vehicle on the highway.

Minimum wage
In 2019, Cassilly voted against a bill that would raise the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2025, calling it a "direct assault" on companies that offer entry-level positions.

Social issues
During the 2015 legislative session, Cassilly introduced a bill that would allow evidence of previous sexual assault allegations to be brought in to criminal trials. In March 2020, he wrote to Republican members of the Maryland House of Delegates urging them to vote against a bill to extend the statute of limitations on child sexual abuse lawsuits, comparing the bill to the sexual assault accusations made against U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his nomination.

In 2016, Cassilly voted against a bill to strip pro-Confederate lyrics from the state song, "Maryland, My Maryland", accusing legislators of erasing the history of people who felt deeply about their principles. In 2018, he opposed a bill that would strip the song of its title as the official state anthem, distancing himself from the song's pro-Confederate sympathies but likening its reclassification to "book burning" and praising its homage to Maryland's military glories. In 2021, he voted for a bill to scrap "Maryland, My Maryland" as the official state anthem.

In January 2018, Cassilly objected to remarks made on the floor of the Maryland Senate condemning comments made by President Donald Trump calling Haiti, El Salvador, and African nations "shithole countries", saying that the remarks were "not appropriate matter for the Senate of Maryland".

In 2019, Cassilly said he opposed a bill to legalize palliative care, saying he believed that it would shift the state's medical community's focus away from hospice care.

During the 2020 legislative session, Cassilly voted to sustain Governor Larry Hogan's veto of a bill that would limit employers from asking a job applicant's criminal record.

Transportation
In 2016, Cassilly voted to sustain Governor Larry Hogan's veto on a bill that would require the governor to publicly rate and rank transportation projects before including them in the state budget.

Personal life
Cassilly is married to his wife Debbie, whom he had met at Bel Air High School. They live in Bel Air, Maryland and have five children.