Hundreds of new laws hit the books in Maryland on Tuesday October 1. All were passed during this year’s session of the General Assembly which adjourned in April and then were signed by Governor Wes Moore. Below is a partial list of the laws taking effect.
CANNABIS
HB272 - Prohibits straw ownership of a cannabis license or registration
CONSUMER PROTECTION
HB262/SB41 - Increases threshold for certain information that a consumer reporting agency is prohibited from including in a consumer credit report to $150-thousand for credit transactions and life insurance underwriting and $75-thousand for employment determinations
HB452/SB675 - Requires the State Board of Individual Tax Preparers by January 1, 2026, to publish on its website a code of ethics and rules of professional conduct for individual tax preparers; requires the board to notify the Comptroller’s Office of specified actions and alleged violations
HB520/SB461 - Allows complaints filed with the State Real Estate Commission alleging advertising violations to be made anonymously accompanied by documentary or other evidence and not under oath
HB603/SB571 - Creates penalties for a “covered entity” that provides an online product reasonably likely to be accessed by children to complete a “data protection impact assessment” of the online product
HB622 - Prohibits a consumer reporting agency from including in a consumer report any record of a criminal proceeding in which the consumer was falsely accused, acquitted, or exonerated; in which a nolle prosequi was entered as to a charge concerning the consumer; or that did not result in a guilty verdict for the consumer
HB882 - Requires a specified sign at all retail service stations to prominently display the credit and debit price if higher than the cash price or the credit and debit price and the cash price for gasoline
SB539 - Prohibits ticket resellers from selling prospective tickets on secondary ticket exchanges; requires sellers to post total price of tickets — including service fees — on listings; requires a reseller to provide the contact information of the resale ticket purchaser
SB542 - Requires to be listed in a brokerage agreement between real estate broker and client a definite termination date that is effective automatically without notice from the client; the amount of compensation to be paid to the broker described as a percentage of the purchase price, a specific dollar amount, or a combination of both; state whether the broker is authorized to receive some or all of the compensation to be paid to the broker from a person other than the client
SB760 - Gift Card Scams Prevention Act; establishes rules and procedures merchants must follow when selling gift cards in the State; requires a merchant that conducts online sales of gift cards to consumers in the State to register with the Office of the Attorney General as an online seller of gift cards
EDUCATION
HB137 - Gives civil immunity to employees of public and nonpublic schools who while acting in official capacity break up student altercations in ‘reasonable manner’ and not acting ‘negligent, willful, wanton, or intentionally tortious’
HB475 - Establishes the Open-Source Phonics Matching Grant Program to provide matching funds to provide free, open-source phonics learning materials to be used by adults to tutor students
HB506 - Authorizes Morgan State University to provide sexual harassment training that consists of webinar, computer-based, or online training that contains an evaluation of what is learned
HB541/SB657 - Creates Student Loan Assistance Repayment Program for Educators for Anne Arundel County Public School employees
ELECTIONS
HB261- Prevents any wages a person is paid for being an election judge from being deducted from the individual’s unemployment weekly benefit payment
HB1503 - Adds state treasurer to list of officials who can not campaign fundraise during General Assembly sessions
EMPLOYMENT
HB52/SB109 - Allows all state employees to take up to 10 days of paid parental bereavement for death of child or for a stillbirth
HB62/SB133 - Extends the timeframe for an investigation to be conducted and a written decision issued to within 60 days after a complaint alleging harassment or discrimination is received from an Executive Branch employee or an applicant for employment
HB260/SB192 - Gives collective bargaining rights to state supervisory employees
HB385/SB38 - Expands information employers must include on pay stubs to include the amount and purpose of all deductions
HB465 - Establishes penalties for employers who knowingly fail to classify employees under the Workplace Fraud Act and for contractors who knowingly violate the state prevailing wage law of up to 60 days in prison and/or fines up to $5-thousand
HB584/SB476 - Expands occupational disease coverage to firefighters that contract thyroid, colon, or ovarian cancer due to contact with toxic substances encountered while in the line of duty
HB649/SB525 - Generally requires an employer to disclose specified wage, benefit, and other compensation information in public or internal job postings and to applicants to which the job posting was not made available under Maryland’s Equal Pay For Equal Work Law - Read more: Maryland joins growing list of states requiring wage transparency
HB650/SB511 - Requires the Secretary of Labor to establish a ratio of three apprentices to one journeyperson for each nontraditional trade occupation and for each newly registered occupation
HB702/SB466 - Exempts Minor League baseball players covered by a collective bargaining agreement from Maryland wage and hour laws
HB819/SB628 - Expands the purposes of the Catastrophic Event Account and the Federal Government Shutdown EmployeNe Assistance Loan Fund so that funds may be used to provide financial assistance to federal non-civilian employees in the event of a full or partial federal government shutdown
HB1388 - Expands law stating that a noncompete or conflict of interest provision in an employment contract is null and void for an employee that is required to be licensed as a veterinary practitioner technician; applies retroactively to any employment contract or agreement entered into on or before the bill’s effective date
ENVIRONMENT
HB19/SB207 - Changes name in official documents of northern snakehead to Chesapeake Channa - Read more: Appetizing new name is latest attempt to slow invasive fish in Maryland
HB159/SB465 - Establishes standards relating to the installation and use of electric vehicle recharging equipment in cooperative housing corporations
HB216/SB206 - Creates specific procedure for governing body of a condominium to grant a lease in excess of one year for the installation and use of leased “clean energy equipment” including that for vehicle recharging, solar energy, and energy storage
HB233- Incorporates climate resilience, environmental justice, and equity measures into the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area Protection Program
HB990 - Makes State greenhouse gas emissions reduction requirements apply to the production of cement
HB991/SB1074 - Establishes an industrial sludge utilization permit to be issued by Maryland Department of the Environment
HB1101/SB653 - Clean Water Justice Act; allows residents to bring civil action regarding the discharge of pollutants affecting ephemeral streams, intermittent streams, or nontidal wetlands that do not have a continuous surface connection to surface water
HB1147 - Prohibits using, supplying, selling, soliciting, or offering for sale in the State playground surfacing materials that contain more than 90 parts per million of lead; PFAS; and more than 20 milligrams per kilogram of PAH
HB1153/SB956 - Establishes discharge limit for “PFAS chemicals” in any water, including stormwater, discharged from any “significant industrial user” as 4 parts per trillion
HB1256/SB959 - Requires the Public Service Commission to adopt a transition plan to require each electric company to transition each customer to a time-of-use tariff by September 1, 2028
SB268 - Eliminates 30 day waiting period the chair of the Chesapeake & Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area Program must follow before referring enforcement actions to the Maryland Attorney General’s office; expands power of Maryland Attorney General to take actions regarding violations
SB808 - Requires the Maryland Department of Agriculture to ensure anaerobic digestion technology projects are not unduly delayed; MDA, must establish guidance for farmers regarding the development and implementation of anaerobic digestion technology
ESTATES/TRUSTS
HB45/SB284 - Authorizes the sale, barter, or exchange of a legally acquired mounted specimen of a game bird, excluding a migratory game bird, or game mammal from a decedent's estate if the specimen is part of the personal property being liquidated or distributed
HB324/SB75 - Increases the threshold monetary amount from $10,000 to $50,000 above which specified transfers by a personal representative, trustee, or conservator to a custodian under the Maryland Uniform Transfers to Minors Act require court authorization
HB325/SB164 - Alters definition of ‘interested person’ in estates and trusts by adding surviving spouse who elects to take elective share; excludes assignees of legatees or heirs or legatees whose interest has been fully adeemed
HB326/SB80 - Limits those who can file an objection to the appointment of a personal representative of an estate of a decedent to interested persons or unpaid claimants
GUNS
HB583/SB475 - Creates the Center For Firearm Violence Prevention in the Maryland Department of Health
HB810 - Prohibits a person from transporting, manufacturing, possessing, selling, transferring, purchasing, receiving or using a switch/auto-sear
HEALTH
HB30/SB217 - Aligns all Maryland health & insurance laws with the federal No Surprises Act
HB42/SB220 - Aligns all state law with federal law banning sale of tobacco to those under 21; allows Maryland Department of Health to reallocate unspent cancer prevention, education, screening, and treatments funds to other counties based on need
HB84/SB332 - Lochlin’s Law; requires hospitals and urgent care centers to implement sepsis detection protocols
HB97/SB723 - Rudy’s Law; prohibits sale and distribution of baby food that contains toxic heavy metals that exceed FDA limits on January 1, 2025; requires manufacturers of baby food beginning January 1, 2025, to test a sample of the final product for each toxic heavy metal before packing individual units for sale or distribution in the State
HB119 - GIFT Act; requires universal syphilis and HIV testing for all pregnant women at the time of delivery; newborn HIV testing when the mother’s HIV status is unknown; inclusion of pregnancy status when reporting an HIV diagnosis; hospital must determine the syphilis serologic status of a mother before discharging the newborn for the purposes of neonatal evaluation and treatment
HB127- Establishes a Nonoccupational Postexposure Prophylaxis (nPEP) Standing Order Program in the Maryland Department of Health
HB149 - Extends timeframe that prohibits health care providers from destroying a record, laboratory report, or x-ray report about a patient from 5 to 10 years after the report or record is made; in the case of a minor patient extends time frame from 3 to 10 years after the patient reaches the age of majority
HB153/SB144 - Prohibits health care providers or its representatives from charging a fee for copies of a medical record requested by an attorney representing the patient
HB177/SB59 - Requires a hospital, prior to discharge, to provide oral and written instructions to an infant’s parent or legal guardian on how to provide a “safe sleep environment” and avoid shaken baby syndrome including inquiring as to whether the parent or legal guardian is able to provide the infant with a bassinet, crib, or portable crib
HB381/SB175 - Requires those applying for an initial or renewal license to practice optometry in Maryland submit to a criminal history check
HB411/SB408 - Requires a licensed healthcare provider when issuing a standing order for an opioid reversal drug to allow an individual to choose any formulation of any opioid reversal drug approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration
HB676 - Right To Try Act; specifies a manufacturer operating within an eligible facility may provide an “individualized investigational treatment” to an eligible patient without compensation or charge
HB986/SB594 - Requires study to consider having Medicaid in Maryland cover treatment for obesity including intensive behavioral therapy and bariatric surgery
HB1002 - Gives Maryland Attorney General’s Office investigative powers for investigating fraud, waste, and abuse of Maryland Department of Health funds
HB1051/SB1059 - Requires a provider who receives reimbursement from Medicaid for obstetric services to complete a prenatal risk assessment form; the “birthing facility” where an infant is born to complete a postpartum infant and maternal referral form and submit the form to the local health department - Read more: Four things you should know about Maryland’s Maternal Health Act of 2024
HB1078 - Requires Medicaid to cover remote ultrasound procedures, fetal nonstress tests
HB1092/SB649 - Requires public safety answering point personnel - like 911 call center operators - receive training on how to give CPR instructions
HB1122/SB1000 - Requires a person at least 120 days before making a contractual arrangement for the acquisition of a nursing home, to submit a request for “acquisition” to the Maryland Health Care Commission and provide specified notice to the residents and staff of the nursing home
HB1155/SB1071 - Requires each hospital to provide evidence-based interventions that reduce the risk of subsequent harm and fatality following an opioid-related overdose before discharging a patient; possess, dispense, administer, and prescribe medication-assisted treatment
HB1171/SB944 - Repeals prohibitions against selling or offering for sale a nonlatex condom or contraceptive or contraceptive device by means of a vending machine or other automatic device at specified school sites
HB1229 - Generally requires a retailer that prepares, distributes, sells, or exposes for a sale a food that is represented to be a “kratom product” to disclose on the product label the factual basis on which the representation is made
HB1230 - Generally requires a retailer that prepares, distributes, sells, or exposes for sale a food that is represented to be a “tianeptine product” to disclose on the product label the factual basis on which the representation is made
HB1293/SB938 - Requires the Maryland Department of Health to develop and implement a three-year public education campaign on prostate, lung, and breast cancer prevention that targets communities disproportionately impacted by those cancers
SB59 - Establishes the Maryland Safe Sleep Certification Program to certification standards for child care centers in accordance with “safe sleep best practices”; requires Maryland Department of Health to conduct public awareness campaign regarding safe sleep practices
SB975 - Establishes the Reproductive Health Care Clinic Security Grant Program to assist reproductive health care clinics in the State with the costs associated with specified security improvements
SB1056 - Limits the sale of electronic smoking devices to licensed vape shop vendors; prohibits the display of cigarettes, other tobacco products, or electronic smoking devices unless the products are behind a counter
SB1099 - Expands the purpose of the Public Access Automated External Defibrillator Program to include an initiative to co-locate up to two doses of naloxone with each automated external defibrillator placed in a public building
HISTORY
HB390/SB341 - Changes name of Banneker-Douglass Museum in Annapolis to the Banneker-Douglass-Tubman Museum
HOUSING
HB13/SB199 - Allows a condominium regime to be established on land owned by an affordable housing land trust
HB17/SB274 - Establishes that counties and Baltimore City have a duty to ‘affirmatively further fair housing’ through housing and urban development programs; requires counties and Baltimore City to include assessment of fair housing in comprehensive plans enacted or amended on or after January 1, 2025
HB93/SB162 - Limits a tenant's liability for rent to no more than 2 months after the date on which the tenant vacates a leased premises if a physician, counselor, therapist, or psychologist completes a form specifying the tenant has an intellectual or developmental disability or mental disorder
HB131 - Requires jurisdictions with more than 250-thousand residents to report specified information relating to project permit applications for residential housing developments, and the jurisdiction’s processing of those permits; jurisdictions must make the report publicly available on its website
HB139/SB171 - Requires landlords to accept financial assistance from federal Office of Home Energy Programs for utility costs a tenant is required to pay
HB143/SB46 - Establishes that a contract for the sale of a condominium unit is unenforceable if the contract does not contain specified notices related to the presence of asbestos
HB309/SB15 - Alters procedures for dispute settlements under the Maryland Cooperative Housing Corporation Act; cease and desist demands for alleged violations must specify a time period of at least 15 days to abate the alleged violation without further sanction; governing body of a cooperative housing corporation must send specified notices to a member at the address of record rather than serve the member; a member of a cooperative housing corporation has a right to request a hearing to be held by the governing body; governing body must give a member at least 10 days’ written notice of the time and place of any hearing
HB486/SB125 - Requires the seller of any residential property located within 0.5 miles of a Superfund site to provide a specified addendum to the contract of sale including the identification of the Superfund site that is within 0.5 miles of the property; the definition of a Superfund site under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines; and a notice that within five days after signing and dating the contract the buyer may void the contract and, on recession, receive a full refund of any money paid to the seller
HB538 - Requires local jurisdictions to allow new manufactured homes in zones that allow single-family residential uses; increases densities and uses in specified zoning areas for qualified affordable housing projects; prohibits a jurisdiction from imposing unreasonable limitations or requirements on a qualified affordable housing project; prevents jurisdictions from denying a permit for, or impose unreasonable restrictions on, a State-funded affordable housing project based on an element of an adequate public facilities law
HB693 - Renter’s Rights & Stabilization Act; establishes the Office of Tenants’ Rights; extends the period between granting judgment for possession in favor of a landlord and the execution of the warrant of restitution; establishes a tenant’s right of first refusal when the title to certain residential rental property is transferred; increases a certain surcharge assessed for summary ejectment, tenant holding over, and specified breach of lease cases to a maximum of $93 per case
HB697/SB1169 - Requires real estate contracts submitted to a party include a statement the buyer has the right to select the buyer’s own title insurance company, settlement company, escrow company or title lawyer
HB709/SB462 - Authorizes a licensed real estate broker to designate themself as the manager of a branch office maintained by the licensed real estate broker
HB1117 - Generally establishes a landlord is deemed to warrant the rental dwelling fit for human habitation; establishes remedies if a landlord breaches the warranty of habitability; establishes additional remedies if a landlord fails to repair serious and dangerous defects
IMMIGRATION STATUS
HB380/SB374 - Prohibits the State Emergency Medical Services Board from requiring an applicant to provide proof they’re awfully present in the United States or have a Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number as a condition for licensure or certification
HB728/SB705 - Allows undocumented residents to be eligible for coverage through the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange under certain criteria
INSURANCE
HB36 - Prohibits public adjusters from soliciting business between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.; requires public adjusters give notice to state Insurance Commissioner if they sign a contract within 72 hours of a loss; extends public adjuster contract cancelation period from 3 days to 15 days
HB67/SB229 - Increases maximum civil penalty the Maryland Insurance Commissioner can impose on unauthorized insurer or person doing business in the state to $125-thousand per violation; increases maximum civil penalty for insurance producer or public adjuster who violates the Insurance Article to $5-thousand per violation
HB90/SB230 - Allows employers with 50 or less workers to be represented by specified individuals instead of an attorney at Maryland Insurance Commissioner hearings
HB176/SB149 - Requires towers to notify insurers electronically when a vehicle is towed from a parking lot
HB265/SB336 - Repeals requirement that an individual to take a pre-licensing course and work for at least one year prior to applying for an insurance producer license from the Maryland Insurance Administration
HB561/SB683 - Requires licensed tree experts or businesses that employ them to show and carry proof of workers compensation insurance
HB647 - Establishes regulations for pet insurance by generally adopting the National Association of Insurance Commissioner pet insurance model act
HB738/SB806 - Increases the amount from $50-thousand to $500-thousand that a home improvement contractor or applicant for a home improve contractor license must carry in general liability insurance
HB759/SB996 - Requires advanced practice registered nurses practicing in Maryland to notify patients in writing if the nurse does not maintain professional liability insurance coverage or has let it lapse
LGBTQ+
HB602 - Prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation under Maryland’s Equal Pay for Equal Work law
HB1397 - Alters numerous provisions that prohibit discrimination based on protected characteristics to include sexual orientation and gender identity
SB119 - Expands definition of legally protected health care to include all gender-affirming care that is legal in Maryland - Read more: Maryland lawmakers push to protect healthcare workers providing gender-affirming care
MENTAL HEALTH
HB933/SB974 - Establishes a State 9-8-8 fee of $.25 per month with a structure and application nearly identical to that of State’s 9-1-1 fee - Read more: Maryland lawmakers pass bill to permanently fund 988 line
MILITARY
HB125/SB159 - Authorizes each county’s clerk of the circuit court to keep an electronic record instead of a physical book containing discharge papers for persons who served in the Armed Forces of the United States
HB178/SB55 - Allows the Motor Vehicle Administration to issue a special disabled veteran registration plate to an individual who is between 50% and 99%, inclusive, service-connected disabled
HB231/SB275 - Authorizes recipients of a U.S. Department of Defense Next of Kin lapel button to apply for special registration plates, similar to Gold Star recipients
HB408/SB412 - Allows an individual with experience with mental care for veterans or active duty military service members to serve on county mental health advisory committees
HB598/SB413 - Prohibits discrimination based on military status in places of public accommodation, housing, employment, financial transactions, education, insurance, the provision of public utility services, and State personnel actions
HB1026/SB707 - Adds members of the U.S. Space Force to state laws that refer to members of the U.S. Armed Forces
OUTDOORS
HB113/SB42 - Requires minors wear a helmet when riding a horse
HB562/SB507 - Increases annual fee for a special Chesapeake Bay and coastal sport fishing license for nonresident applicants from $50 to $100
HB613 - Creates recreational oyster license available only for Maryland residents
PUBLIC SAFETY
HB5/SB130 - Creates misdemeanor offense of indecent exposure in the presence of a minor with a penalty of up to five years in prison
HB99/SB113 - Prohibits sexual solicitation of a minor with the intent to produce or distribute child sex abuse images with penalties of up to 10 years in prison for first offense and up to 20 years for subsequent offenses
HB115 - Jaycee Webster Victims’ Rights Act - requires a commitment unit to include the name and telephone number of the lead victim services employee of the appropriate State’s Attorney’s office given to a victim, victim’s representative, or witness regarding the release from confinement of a sentenced defendant or child respondent
HB195- Creates Purple Alert program for rapid dissemination of information to assist in locating a missing person with cognitive impairment
HB338/SB182 - Requires specified training, audits, and reports related to the use of facial recognition technology and, with specified exceptions, prohibits the introduction of results generated by FRT in a criminal proceeding or a juvenile delinquency proceeding
HB382/SB344 - Exempts professional land surveyors from criminal and common law tort trespassing laws who enter property of another to practice land surveying
HB387/SB643 - Allows public release of surveillance videos showing illegal dumping in Baltimore City
HB404 - Gabriel’s Law; requires a law enforcement agency that receives a “qualified request” for a wellness check of an individual to immediately conduct a wellness check if the individual is located in the law enforcement agency’s jurisdiction or submit a request to the relevant law enforcement agency in the State or another state to conduct a wellness check, if the individual is not located in the law enforcement agency’s jurisdiction
HB458/SB111 - Requires in an electronic or paper court filing, including a charging document, in a criminal or juvenile delinquency case to redact any identifying information that appears unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence that there is good cause to order otherwise
HB496- Establishes that it is second-degree rape for a person to engage in vaginal intercourse or a sexual act with another person without the consent of the other person with or without the threat of force
HB508/SB550 - Alters the definition of abuse to include labor trafficking for purposes of law governing children in need of assistance cases and child abuse and neglect reporting
HB531 - Repeals the monthly $50 fee assessed by Maryland Parole Commission as a condition of supervision for each individual on parole and supervised by the Division of Parole and Probation
HB544/SB391 - Extends statute of limitations for the crime of sex extortion to five years, stalking to ten years, and removes statute of limitations for revenge porn
HB565/SB36 - Creates Maryland Deaths in Custody Oversight Board within the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy
HB664/SB575 - Judge Andrew F. Wilkinson Judicial Security Act; establishes Office of Information Privacy in the Administrative Office of the Courts to make requests to not publish personal information of judges - Read more: Suspect in Maryland judge’s killing found dead
HB801/SB551 - Establishes the Maryland Rules governing discovery in circuit court cases apply to a proceeding to determine eligibility for conditional release or discharge; requires a court and Maryland Department of Health to promptly inform the committed person’s counsel of record when they receive a report that a committed person violated a condition of release or violated conditional release; establishes that a preponderance of the evidence standard applies to an applicant in change of conditional release proceedings; clarifies that a court may extend a conditional release by up to five years and authorizes a court to shorten or terminate the conditional release
HB814/SB744 - Expands the jurisdiction of the Department of Juvenile Services to take cases of children from 10 to 12 for certain offenses; increases probation length for juveniles in certain cases; allows courts to extend probation lengths if the juvenile has missed meetings for unexcused absences; requires written documentation by police of when juveniles are taken into custody - Read more: With juvenile justice bill signed, Maryland Senate committee leader wants fewer teens charged as adults
HB960/SB1184 - Repeals the requirement in the city of Frederick for a District Court judge, who tries and commits a vagrant or other offender of a municipal law or ordinance, to assign them to work on the public roads of the county or City of Frederick
HB1047- Prohibits the sale or distribution of a self-administered sexual assault evidence collection kit; specifies that evidence indicating the physical evidence of a sexual crime obtained using the specified prohibited materials is not admissible in a criminal or civil proceeding
HB1308 - Prohibits a person from recording a deed or other instrument that the person knows contains false information, including information related to the ownership of the property; violator is guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a maximum penalty of a $500 fine; prosecution must be initiated within three years after the offense was committed
HB1498 - Prohibits an individual from aiding or abetting the unauthorized practice of massage therapy in the State; violator is guilty of a felony and subject to a fine of up to $5,000 or imprisonment for up to one year for first offense and a fine of up to $20,000 per day or imprisonment for up to five years for subsequent offenses
SB7 - Requires the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission to develop a uniform citizen positive community feedback process to be adopted and followed by each law enforcement agency
SB11 - Authorizes the partial expungement of eligible charges within a unit of charges if one or more of the charges is ineligible
SB111 - Redacts identifying information in criminal or juvenile delinquency case filings unless the court finds by clear and convincing evidence there is good cause to order otherwise
SB273 - Prohibits photographing or otherwise recording images of a correctional facility through the use of an “unmanned aircraft” unless authorized by the managing official of the correctional facility or the Secretary of Public Safety and Correctional Services
SB468 - Requires private home detention monitoring agencies to make specified notifications immediately rather than on the next business day; specifies who should be notified when a court is not open for business
SB652 - Requires the Department of Juvenile Services to report to the General Assembly by December 1 each year on the number of juveniles under DJS’s supervision in the preceding year who were non fatally shot, shot another individual, or were victims of a homicide and the actions and timeline of actions DJS took in response
SB1098 - Prohibits an incarcerated individual who is serving a sentence for first-degree rape, that occurred on or after October 1, 2024, from earning diminution credits to reduce the incarcerated individual’s term of confinement - Read more: ‘Good time’ credits rolled back for some rape offenses in Maryland
TRANSPORTATION
HB38 - Prohibits the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City from adopting or enforcing a local law requiring the creation of new off-street parking for a residential development that is located within a 0.25-mile radius of a present or planned MARC, MTA Light Rail or Red Line station
HB1032 - Establishing the Tourist Area and Corridor Signage Program to create a system of supplemental guide signs to direct motorists to eligible individual attractions
HB1507/SB70 - Requires Maryland Transit Administration before announcing any service reduction or cancellation of an existing bus line to compile a specified report on the impacts of the proposed change; MTA must publish the report on its website with a visible link identifying the impacted route 30 days before a public hearing on the change
VEHICLE OPERATION
HB43/SB316 - Authorizes a person to operate a golf cart equipped with approved lighting on county or municipal highways between dawn and dusk if the maximum posted speed limit does not exceed 30 miles per hour; golf cart must be kept as far to the right of the roadway as feasible; driver must have a valid driver’s license
HB102/SB730 - Requires rear passengers on motorcycles be able to place their feet firmly on footrests while riding; violations are a misdemeanor with fines of up to $500
HB105- Expands the Maryland Ignition Interlock System Program to individuals granted probation before judgment for driving while under the influence of alcohol and individuals convicted of or granted PBJ for driving while impaired by alcohol
HB212/SB155 - Allows Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties to use noise abatement monitoring systems on state and local highways to record violations of state laws regarding maximum sound limits of motor vehicles
HB337/SB315 - Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Memorial Act; increases penalties for drivers who do not yield the right-of-way in designated bike lanes for those legally riding bikes, scooters, and personal mobility devices to imprisonment of up to two months and/or fines of up to $25-hundred
HB552/SB672 - Requires Motor Vehicle Administration to send citations issued from automated speed/red light/etc cameras to current mailing address on file with MVA or current residential address on file with MVA if a mailing address is unavailable
HB737 - Requires a driver traveling slower than the general speed of traffic on any roadway - rather than just an interstate highway located in a rural area - to drive in the right-hand lane or lanes
HB782/SB838 - Allows specified officers of a volunteer fire company to equip their privately owned vehicles with red or red and white lights/devices
HB840 - Exempts all new vehicle dealers of Class M motor homes and Class G trailers and their licensed salespersons from restrictions on the number of annual vehicle shows in which they may participate
HB967 - Prevents parking on any street or highway in the town of Keedysville vehicles in classes E, F, G, H, P
OTHER
HB161/SB277 - Exempts from paying a fee for a state ID card including a driver’s license those released from a correctional facility within the prior 60 days; a youth under the care of the Department of Juvenile Services; a youth between 15 and 20 years of age who is a participant in a Department of Human Services program; is currently homeless; or is currently under the care of the Maryland Department of Health
HB211/SB648 - Bill prohibits a person from serving as a broker between a contractor and subcontractor in the State within five years of being convicted of an offense constituting criminal malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance under federal or State law
HB230/SB267 - Allows Motor Vehicle Administration to issue copies of death certificates
HB375/SB156 - Renames the Port of Baltimore the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore
HB379/SB547 - Prohibits allowing performance of a covered animal - bear, cougar, elephant, jaguar, leopard, lion, tiger, and nonprimate humans - in a traveling animal act with specified exceptions - Read more: Maryland lawmakers don’t want the circus to come to town with animal acts
HB383/SB27 - Enters Maryland into the interstate Cosmetology Licensure Compact for cosmetologists; bill is contingent on six other states enacting similar legislation
HB420 - Requires communication boards be built in newly constructed play areas in public parks or recreation areas
HB426/SB92 - Requires movie theaters to provide access to fully operational and well-maintained closed captioning technology for each screening except during the first seven days after a motion picture premieres in that theater
HB432 - Replaces term ‘mental retardation’ with ‘intellectual disability’ in court and judicial proceedings and criminal procedure
HB501/SB522 - Increases from $1,000 to $5,000 the maximum fine a county can impose for the enforcement of a local ordinance, resolution, bylaw, or regulation adopted by the county
HB528/SB116 - Ensures prohibition on orphan court judges from practicing law in all Maryland counties and Baltimore City
HB542/SB668 - Requires the Department of Human Services to provide new luggage to a child in foster care who are being removed from a household
HB628/SB409 - Allows the State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists to waive the education, experience, and examination requirements for licensure as a clinical marriage and family therapist for an applicant that is licensed or certified to practice clinical marriage and family therapy in another state or territory
HB666/SB35 - Removes age requirement for state SNAP supplemental aid; raises monthly benefit from $40 to $50
HB756/SB573 - Requires Secretary of State to furnish a Maryland State flag to drape casket of eligible decedents
HB763 - Removes the representative of the Council on American‐Islamic Relations Maryland Office from the Commission on Hate Crime Response and Prevention; adds two members from the Muslim community
HB969 - Katherine Morris Death Reclassification Act; requires a medical examiner, if the cause or manner of death on a death certificate is amended or corrected to be undetermined or homicide, to provide notice to the State’s Attorney and local law enforcement where the body was found of the different finding or conclusion; medical examiner must also request the Secretary of Health send the person in interest a new certified death certificate at no cost
HB981 - Requires the Maryland Department of Disabilities to fully implement by July 1, 2025 provisions that require certain reasonable steps to provide equal access to public services for individuals with limited English proficiency
HB1069/SB1084 - Creates the Commission for the Deaf, Deafblind, and Hard of Hearing as an independent unit of State government; Governor must appoint, subject to the advice and consent of the Senate, an executive director for the commission, who must be a deaf or hard of hearing individual knowledgeable and experienced with issues affecting deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing individuals
HB1116 - Requires a licensed restaurant to also have a trader’s license if the restaurant does business as a trader or exhibitor in the State
HB1158/SB669 - Repeals requirement the Maryland Attorney General’s Office annually publish its report and opinions of the Attorney General from the preceding year in a bound volume; instead, OAG must publish the specified reports on its website
HB1168/SB1028 - Green Death Care Options Act; requires the Office of Cemetery Oversight to adopt regulations of crematories that use “alkaline hydrolysis”; “reduction facilities” that use “natural organic reduction”; and “registered reduction operators
HB1206 - Establishes a Maryland-Ireland Trade Commission within the Department of Commerce to study and promote trade between Maryland and Ireland
HB1302/SB1044 - Adds skin exfoliation, relaxation, hydration, contouring, and nonablative rejuvenation to definition of providing esthetic services under the licensing power of the Maryland State Board of Cosmetologists
HB1362/SB629 - Removes one consumer member seat of the Maryland State Board of Cosmetologists and replaces it with one seat for a licensed esthetician
SB250 - Prohibits county libraries from charging fines to minors for overdue library materials
SB297 - Reduces the number of years from 12 to 10 that an engineer member of the State Board of Professional Engineers must have practiced engineering
SB298 - Authorizes the State Board of Electricians to assess a licensee a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for each violation of the licensing statute
SB873 - Extends, from 10 to 60 days after the birth of a newborn, the time frame during which a person can leave an unharmed newborn with a responsible adult without the intent to return for the newborn, without being subject to civil liability or criminal prosecution
SB905 - Authorizes researchers affiliated with institutions of higher education who are conducting academic or policy research to review a court record related to a petition for an extreme risk protective order
SB952 - Establishes that an assisted living referrer must maintain general liability insurance; require employees to obtain a criminal history records check; sign a federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act agreement with the client or the client’s representative; maintain a signed, written, and dated document between the assisted living referrer and the client or the client’s representative; and arrange and facilitate a tour of the assisted living program