SB 80 updates Maryland's financial disclosure rules for judicial branch officials and candidates. It shifts responsibility for administering these disclosures from the Supreme Court to the Administrative Office of the Courts (or another body designated by the court), requiring them to maintain and publicly post financial statements online. The bill repeals a prior requirement that the Supreme Court send copies of these disclosures to the State Ethics Commission. This change directly affects current and prospective judges, court staff, and judicial candidates, ensuring their financial disclosures are accessible to the public through an online system starting July 2026.
HB 263 requires county and municipal bus routes (excluding MTA/Washington Metro routes) to allow passengers to board or exit at early voting center entrances if the center is within half a mile of the bus route, during early voting hours. This directly affects voters using local public transit near early voting locations and the transit operators managing those routes. The bill also mandates election boards to inform voters about early voting locations through media, mailings, and other public outreach starting 30 days before voting periods. It takes effect January 1, 2027, and applies to fixed local bus services funded by counties or municipalities.
SB 74 would remove a rule that sometimes required promoted police officers and deputy state fire marshals to accept a lower pay step than their previous position if others in the new rank had equal or more seniority. Currently, if a promoted employee’s prior step was higher than peers with equal or greater experience in the new rank, they were automatically placed in a lower step. The bill repeals this restriction, ensuring promoted employees retain their previous step’s pay rate upon advancement. This change applies to all future promotions starting July 1, 2026, directly affecting Maryland police and fire marshal personnel.
HB 234 repeals a provision that sometimes required police employees or deputy State fire marshals to accept a lower pay step upon promotion if other employees in the same rank had equal or more service time but a higher pay step. The bill directly affects current and future police employees and deputy State fire marshals in Maryland. It removes the restriction that forced promoted officers to move to a lower pay step in their new rank, instead allowing them to retain the pay step they held in their previous rank. This change ensures promotions align with the employee's prior pay step without automatic reduction, streamlining pay progression. The law takes effect July 1, 2026.
SB 160 requires licensed firearms dealers in Maryland to notify the Secretary of State Police within 24 hours if security features (like video surveillance, physical barriers, or monitored alarms) are compromised by events such as burglary, robbery, or theft. This applies to dealers who operate facilities storing firearms and must maintain specific security measures as outlined in the bill. Failure to report within 24 hours incurs a $1,000 civil penalty, with repeated violations risking license suspension or revocation. The law does not replace existing reports to local law enforcement or the ATF.
HB 284 requires licensed firearms dealers in Maryland to notify the Secretary of State Police within 24 hours if a burglary, robbery, theft, or similar event compromises their required security features. These features include video recording systems, physical barriers on doors/windows, monitored burglary alarms, and secure storage for firearms. Dealers who fail to report such breaches face civil penalties up to $1,000, with license suspension for a second offense and revocation for a third or subsequent violation. The bill does not alter existing security standards but adds this mandatory reporting duty.
SB 87 repeals Maryland's requirement that driver's licenses, identification cards, and moped permits include a color photograph. It removes the specific mandate for color photos from relevant sections of state law (Sections 12-301(g)(2)(v), 16-111.1(d)(2)(iv), and 16-122(d)(3)(v)). This change directly affects Maryland residents applying for or renewing these documents, allowing the Motor Vehicle Administration to accept non-color photographs if they meet other requirements. The bill takes effect October 1, 2026.
HB 248 removes the requirement that photos on Maryland-issued identification cards, driver's licenses, and moped operator permits must be in color. This change affects all applicants for these documents by allowing black-and-white photographs instead of color ones. The bill repeals specific sections of Maryland law (including Code sections 12-301(g)(2)(v), 16-111.1(d)(2)(iv), and 16-122(d)(3)(v)) that currently mandate color photos, effective October 1, 2026.
SB 228 would update Maryland Environmental Service (MES) operations by allowing the Treasurer to delegate certain financial duties to the Deputy Treasurer, raising the small procurement threshold from $25,000 to $50,000 for purchases, and modifying how MES must notify ratepayers about service fee changes. Specifically, it requires 60 days' advance notice via newspaper, website, email/text, or mail for rate adjustments in service districts. The bill directly affects MES staff managing finances, contractors providing goods/services, and residents/businesses paying MES fees. If enacted, these changes would streamline internal processes and improve communication with ratepayers about cost changes.
HB 247 modifies Maryland's Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area Protection Program by tightening standards for land-use variances in protected areas. It requires local jurisdictions to presume that new development requests in critical areas conflict with program goals unless applicants prove hardship beyond convenience or financial gain. The bill adds that existing accessory structures on a parcel create a presumption of reasonable land use, and applicants must compare their request to similar conforming properties within the critical area. These changes apply to landowners seeking variances for development in designated coastal critical areas, effective October 1, 2026.
HB 240 requires local planning commissions to notify Maryland's Department of Planning when beginning a review of their community's long-range land use plan (comprehensive plan). This notification triggers the Department to provide guidance materials within 60 days, including state laws, best practices, and resources to support the plan's review, revision, or amendment. The bill directly affects local planning commissions and the Department of Planning, streamlining the process for updating comprehensive plans every 10 years. It aims to improve alignment between local plans and state land use goals without altering land use policies or requirements.
SB 91 requires Maryland's State Board of Elections to designate a specific contact person for the Address Confidentiality Program. This program protects survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, harassment, or human trafficking (who use a substitute address for privacy) by ensuring their actual address is used for voting purposes, while keeping their address confidential from public view. The bill mandates that local election offices must not disclose participant addresses except to law enforcement for official purposes or under a court order. It also establishes the contact person to handle implementation inquiries between election offices and program participants. The law takes effect June 1, 2026.
