Del. Susan McComas

Maddy summaryHB 631 prohibits the State or its political subdivisions from using eminent domain to take privately owned property subject to a permanent agricultural or conservation easement. This directly affects landowners who hold such easements, protecting their property from forced acquisition for public projects. The bill amends Maryland’s real property law (specifically Section 12-101(b)(2) of the Annotated Code) to add this explicit prohibition. It does not apply to existing legal processes for state roads or Baltimore City. The law takes effect October 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 680 requires all Maryland municipalities to implement voter registration for local elections and mandates that only U.S. citizens may register to vote in municipal elections. It repeals previous exceptions allowing municipalities to operate without registration (e.g., those using pre-1990 voter lists) and removes provisions for supplemental voter lists. The bill directly affects every city, town, and municipal election in Maryland by standardizing registration rules and enforcing citizenship requirements. It takes effect October 1, 2025, and amends Maryland’s Election Law and Local Government Code to reflect these changes.

Maddy summaryHB 740 requires campaigns in Maryland to disclose when campaign materials (like images, audio, or videos) use AI-generated or altered content that misrepresents reality. It applies to candidates, campaign groups, and registered political entities distributing such materials within the state. The bill mandates clear, visible disclosures: for images, a text statement must appear in readable size; for audio, a spoken warning at the start and end; and for videos, on-screen text visible throughout. These disclosures must state that the media was altered to create a false impression of an event, speech, or appearance. The law amends Maryland’s election code to add this transparency requirement for synthetic media in campaign communications.

Maddy summaryHB 703 allows evidence of autism spectrum disorder, developmental disability, or intellectual disability diagnoses to be used in criminal cases when relevant to the defendant's mental state at the time of the alleged offense. It requires judges to consider such diagnoses during pretrial release decisions for defendants with these conditions. The bill updates Maryland's evidence rules (under Article 10-926) and pretrial procedures (under Article 5-216) to incorporate these specific diagnoses. It references existing definitions of "developmental disability" and "intellectual disability" from health law, without altering those definitions. The law takes effect October 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 552 requires all Maryland higher education institutions to provide free fentanyl test strips (defined as "drug detection products") to students. These products must be available at no cost in campus health centers, libraries, and bathrooms. Institutions must also annually report to the Commission on naloxone use incidents and the quantity of test strips distributed. The bill directly affects colleges and universities across Maryland, aiming to improve access to overdose prevention tools for students. It takes effect July 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 640 requires Maryland's Public Service Commission to consider how proposed overhead transmission line projects affect properties already protected by conservation easements during certificate approval reviews. It mandates applicants to evaluate alternative routes that avoid these easements or minimize impacts on them, and to document route choices. This directly affects landowners with conservation easements near planned transmission lines and utilities seeking project approvals. The bill updates existing review criteria (Section 7-207(f)) to include this new requirement, effective October 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 534 creates the Interstate Dental and Dental Hygiene Licensure Compact, allowing dentists and dental hygienists licensed in Maryland to practice in other participating states without reapplying for separate licenses. The bill establishes a Commission to oversee the compact, requiring all participating states to accept the same national licensing exam (ADEX) and share disciplinary records to ensure public safety. It specifically benefits military personnel and their spouses by eliminating fees and expediting licensure during relocations. The compact also eliminates duplicate paperwork and costs for licensees moving between states, streamlining access to dental care across participating jurisdictions.

Maddy summaryHB 548 restricts Maryland's Governor from deploying the state militia (including the National Guard) into "active duty combat" without specific congressional action. It prohibits such deployments unless the U.S. Congress has passed an official declaration of war (per Article I, Section 8, Clause 11) or taken a specific action under Clause 15 to "call forth" the militia for federal purposes. The bill explicitly preserves the Governor's authority to deploy the militia under Title 32 of U.S. law for domestic support, such as disaster response within Maryland. This directly affects the Governor's power to commit state military forces to overseas combat roles without federal congressional authorization.

Maddy summaryHB 382 prohibits Maryland's Medicaid program (Maryland Medical Assistance Program) and certain insurers, health plans, and managed care organizations from requiring prior authorization, step therapy, or "fail-first" protocols for specific mental health medications. It directly affects adults diagnosed with bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, major depression, PTSD, or medication-induced movement disorders linked to serious mental illness. The law bans these coverage barriers starting July 1, 2025, ensuring immediate coverage for prescribed medications treating these conditions without extra approval steps. This applies to all covered plans under Maryland law, removing administrative hurdles for these essential treatments.

Maddy summaryThis bill establishes fees on telephone and mobile service providers to fund Maryland's behavioral health crisis response system. It requires traditional phone companies to pay a fee per subscriber and prepaid wireless providers to pay a fee on each retail transaction, with all collected money going into a dedicated state trust fund. The fund is designated to cover the costs of maintaining the 9-8-8 suicide prevention hotline and supporting statewide crisis services such as call centers, mobile teams, and stabilization facilities. Additionally, the legislation mandates that the state Comptroller audit how these fees are collected and limits the amount of revenue that can be used for administrative expenses.