Del. Greg Wims

Maddy summaryHB 1369 establishes a $25 hourly minimum wage for Maryland's education support professionals (noncertificated school staff like bus drivers and cafeteria workers) starting July 1, 2025. County boards of education must pay this rate, with annual increases tied to the Consumer Price Index for urban consumers. The wage will automatically rise each July 1 based on inflation, but will not decrease if inflation is negative or stagnant. This directly affects over 10,000 non-teaching school support staff across Maryland's public school systems.

Maddy summaryHB 1254 establishes a state program to provide funding to Maryland public and nonpublic schools participating in the federal child nutrition program's community eligibility provision. The program covers the difference between federal paid and free meal reimbursement rates, helping schools avoid financial shortfalls when serving more students at no cost. The State Department of Education will distribute funds based on poverty concentration and geographic diversity in school districts. The state will appropriate $10 million annually starting in fiscal year 2027 to support this program.

Maddy summaryHB 1245 modifies Maryland’s Blueprint for Maryland’s Future education reform by removing funding for the middle/high school career counseling program and requiring county school boards to report per-school funding distribution for specific programs. It creates a waiver for schools with 350 or fewer students from minimum funding requirements and adjusts educator career ladder standards for principals. The bill also expands prekindergarten eligibility to include more children and mandates two studies: one on teacher certification and another on special education funding adequacy. These changes directly affect school districts, educators, and students participating in the Blueprint’s programs.

Maddy summaryHB 1513 prohibits school resource officers and school security employees in Maryland public schools from engaging in federal immigration investigation or enforcement activities. It directly affects school security personnel, including law enforcement officers assigned to schools under memorandums of understanding and non-officer security staff. The bill adds Section 7-1508.1 to Maryland’s education code, explicitly banning the use of school security staff for federal immigration enforcement functions under Section 287(g) of federal law. The prohibition takes effect July 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 1287 prohibits manufacturing, selling, purchasing, receiving, or transferring "convertible pistols" in Maryland. A convertible pistol is defined as any semiautomatic pistol that can be converted into a machine gun solely by attaching a switch or auto-sear. The bill amends Maryland's Criminal Law to specifically target these firearms, directly affecting anyone handling such weapons or their conversion components. It does not ban all semiautomatic pistols, only those that meet this specific conversion definition. The law aims to prevent the use of devices that enable rapid-fire capabilities through simple attachment.

Maddy summaryHB 1291 requires assisted living facilities with 15 or more beds to establish family councils to advocate for residents' rights and quality of life. These councils must include family members or appointed representatives of residents, and facilities must provide new residents with written information about the council’s purpose and contact details. Facilities must respond in writing to council communications within 14 days and maintain public and regulatory files of all council correspondence, with public files anonymizing resident information. The bill directly affects residents, families, and facility operators in Maryland’s assisted living sector by creating formal channels for resident advocacy.

Maddy summaryHB 1248 requires large online platforms (with 100,000+ U.S. monthly active users) to establish a clear process for individuals to report and request removal of non-consensual intimate images or videos. Platforms must disable or remove such content within 48 hours of a valid request, identify copies, and prevent new copies from being displayed. The law mandates data logging for legal purposes but excludes email services, broadband providers, and platforms primarily featuring non-user-generated content. It directly affects major social media and content-sharing platforms, not small sites or personal communications services. The bill focuses on creating a standardized removal mechanism for victims of non-consensual image sharing, without altering criminal penalties for the act itself.

Maddy summaryThis House Joint Resolution (HJ 6) is a symbolic statement by Maryland's General Assembly expressing support for nuclear disarmament efforts. It formally joins 73 other jurisdictions (including seven states and over 75 counties/municipalities) that have passed similar "Back from the Brink" resolutions. The resolution urges Maryland's U.S. Congressional delegation to cosponsor a federal resolution supporting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and the five key policies of the Back from the Brink initiative (like ending hair-trigger alerts and ending first-use nuclear policies). It also calls on the U.S. President and Senate to endorse the international treaty banning nuclear weapons. As a resolution, it has no legal effect but serves as a formal position statement.

Maddy summaryHB 233, the Maryland Worker Freedom Act, prohibits employers from penalizing employees or job applicants who decline to attend or participate in mandatory workplace meetings where the employer expresses views on religious or political topics. It specifically bans actions like firing, disciplining, or refusing to hire someone for such refusal, covering matters like elections, political parties, religious practices, or support for organizations. The law does not apply to religious employers or schools exempt under federal civil rights law, nor does it restrict voluntary meetings or legally required communications. This bill directly affects all Maryland workers and job seekers in non-exempt workplaces by protecting their choice to opt out of such employer-sponsored discussions.

Maddy summaryHB 1537 modifies Maryland's real property law to clarify that implied warranties for home improvements (such as being free of faulty materials or fit for habitation) do not apply when an improvement is incomplete or missing at the time of deed delivery. This directly affects home buyers purchasing properties with unfinished work, such as a house lacking a completed garage or foundation. The key provision (Section 10-203(b)(2)) explicitly excludes these warranties for incomplete or missing improvements, while maintaining other warranty protections for completed work. The bill takes effect October 1, 2025.