Maryland Bills | MyRepTracker

passed both · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 1341: Immigration Enforcement - Expanding Sensitive Locations, Notification, and Guidance (Maryland Values Act of 2026)

HB 1341 prohibits public school security personnel - including school resource officers, security employees, and certain law enforcement officers - from engaging in federal immigration enforcement or sharing student/employee records for immigration purposes. The bill requires security staff to immediately contact school officials if presented with a valid judicial warrant, subpoena, or legal order for immigration-related information. It amends Maryland's Education Code to clarify that school security cannot be used for immigration investigations under federal §287(G) and must comply with state privacy laws. This directly affects school security staff and protects students, employees, and their families from immigration enforcement activities within public schools.

Topics ✓ Education ✓ Immigration ✓ Technology

passed · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 1621: Wastewater Treatment Plants - Discharges - Requirements

HB 1621 requires wastewater treatment plants processing over 50 million gallons of effluent daily to monitor discharges for hormones, PFAS chemicals, and bacteria, and publicly post daily bacterial levels and incident reports (like overflows) on their websites within 24 hours. It establishes bacterial safety thresholds requiring immediate public alerts when exceeded and bars non-compliant plants from Maryland's Water Quality Trading Program. Smaller plants (under 50 million gallons daily) must report staffing plans annually instead of daily data. The bill mandates transparency through public websites and gives the Department authority to enforce these requirements.

Topics ✓ Environment

passed both · Maryland · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 447: Child Abuse and Neglect – Disclosure of Reports and Records

SB 447 expands who can receive child abuse and neglect reports from Maryland's Department of Human Services, specifically allowing disclosure to school officials, child care providers, university administrators, and juvenile justice staff when they need the information to protect children. It permits schools to access reports for disciplinary actions involving staff or contractors who work with students, and child care facilities to assess employee suitability. The bill also adds the Juvenile Justice Monitoring Unit and higher education institutions to permitted recipients for on-campus child-related incidents. All disclosures must include safeguards to protect the identity of reporters and others at risk of harm.

passed both · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 222: County Boards of Education - Opioid Overdose-Reversing Medications - Policy Requirements (Naloxone Access Act)

HB 222 requires Maryland public schools and colleges to update policies and education programs to address opioid overdoses. It mandates schools to store naloxone, allow authorized staff and students to possess it, and provide liability protection for good-faith use during overdoses. The bill also adds naloxone's life-saving role to K-12 drug prevention curricula (starting in third grade) and requires annual parent notifications about school naloxone policies. Additionally, schools must report overdose incidents requiring naloxone use to the State Department. This affects all public K-12 schools and state-funded colleges.

Topics ✓ Education ✓ Healthcare

passed both · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 153: Residential Rental Apartments - Air-Conditioning Requirement

HB 153 requires landlords to provide air-conditioning in most residential rental units in Maryland under specific conditions. It applies to buildings with four or more dwelling units (excluding historic properties, pre-1950 developments, and certain Baltimore public housing), mandating landlords maintain temperatures at or below 80°F in living areas from June 1 to September 30 each year. New construction must comply starting June 1, 2026, while units with major electrical or heating system upgrades must comply starting October 1, 2026. The law does not apply retroactively to buildings with permits issued before the bill's effective date.

Topics ✓ Housing

passed · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 55: Vehicle Laws - Speed Monitoring Systems - Residential Districts

HB 55 modifies Maryland's vehicle laws to expand where speed monitoring systems (like photo radar) can be used in residential areas. It updates the definition of "residential district" to require properties along highways to be mainly residential for at least 300 feet and not business areas. The bill specifically authorizes these systems on highways in residential districts with 35 mph limits, school zones, certain roads in Prince George’s County, and high-risk crash locations identified in safety plans. Local governments must first approve their use via public hearing and local law. This affects residents in designated areas and requires new local authorization for speed monitoring enforcement.

Topics ✓ Transportation

passed both · Maryland · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 65: Election Law - Campaign Finance - Exploratory Committees

SB 65 clarifies rules for "exploratory committees," which potential candidates form to test their viability for office before officially running. It removes contribution limits for these committees (meaning donors can give any amount) but restricts their spending to specific activities like polls, mailings, staff, websites, and office equipment. If a candidate later creates an official campaign committee, they must buy any equipment from the exploratory committee at fair market value. Any leftover funds must be returned to donors or designated organizations within 120 days, either pro-rata to contributors or to a political party, nonprofit, or campaign fund. The bill applies existing campaign finance rules to exploratory committees while creating specific allowances for their temporary use.

passed both · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 139: Sales and Use Tax - Tax-Free Day - Veterans' Day

HB 139 establishes an annual tax-free day on November 11 (Veterans Day) starting in 2026, allowing veterans to purchase items under $2,000 without paying Maryland's sales tax. To qualify, veterans must show a driver's license or ID card noting veteran status at the point of sale. The Comptroller can suspend the tax-free day at their discretion. This law directly affects veterans shopping for qualifying items on Veterans Day, creating a temporary sales tax exemption with specific verification requirements.

Topics ✗ Budget & Taxes ✓ Veterans

passed · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 44: Election Law - Petitions and Ballot Questions - Contents, Plain Language Requirement, and Procedures

HB 44 requires that summaries on petitions to place ballot questions and the descriptions of those questions on ballots be written in plain language, avoiding jargon, double negatives, and passive voice. It mandates that these summaries include a brief title, a clear explanation of the policy change, and the practical outcome of each voting choice. The bill sets a July 1 deadline for election officials to prepare and certify this information before general elections and requires a 15-day public comment period on proposed language. These changes apply to all petitions and ballot questions in Maryland, aiming to improve voter clarity.

passed both · Maryland · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 180: Evidence - Interception of Oral Communications - Fair Housing Testing

SB 180 allows fair housing testers working for specific programs (federal, state, local governments, or qualifying nonprofit civil rights organizations) to legally record oral communications during housing tests to document potential discrimination. The bill creates an exception to Maryland's wiretap law, permitting testers to intercept conversations they are party to if the recording is solely for gathering evidence of fair housing violations under federal, state, or local law. Crucially, recordings made under this exception cannot be used as evidence in court or other proceedings except to enforce fair housing laws. The law takes effect October 1, 2026, and directly affects fair housing testing organizations and their trained testers.

Topics ✓ Housing

passed both · Maryland · Senate Apr 13, 2026

SB 246: Health Services Cost Review Commission - Term of Office of Members

SB 246 amends Maryland law to change how members of the Health Services Cost Review Commission serve after their term ends. Currently, members could serve until a successor was appointed and qualified; this bill limits post-term service to a maximum of six months. It also repeals the previous rule allowing members appointed after a term began to serve until a successor was appointed. The change affects Commission members and the Governor, who appoints them, streamlining leadership transitions. This is a procedural adjustment to the Commission's membership terms, not a substantive policy change to health services.

passed · Maryland · House of Delegates Apr 13, 2026

HB 50: General Assembly - Special Election to Fill a Vacancy in Office

HB 50 proposes a constitutional amendment requiring special elections to fill vacancies in Maryland's General Assembly (Delegates or Senators) when the vacancy occurs 55 days or more before the candidate filing deadline for the regular statewide election held in the second year of a term. This would replace current gubernatorial appointments with a special election held simultaneously with the next regular primary and general elections. The change directly affects legislative districts where vacancies happen early enough to trigger this process, ensuring the replacement is chosen by voters rather than appointed by the governor. The amendment would take effect if approved by voters in the 2026 general election.