View MML's positions on legislation introduced in the General Assembly.

Each week the MML legislative committee, made up of elected municipal leaders and municipal staff, reviews General Assembly bills that have impact on the operations of municipal government. Check back as new bills are added to the list each week.

Due to a new state law that took effect on October 1, 2023, municipalities are now required to electronically send the results of their election to the State Board of Elections (SBE) within 30 days after the results are certified to be posted on their website.

There is no specified format and you can see examples of results submitted so far on the SBE website here.

Last week, a new report titled "The Economic Significance of Maryland's Municipalities," was unveiled in partnership with Sage Policy Group, a Baltimore-based economic and policy consultancy. The report details how the operation of municipal governments positively impacts the local and State-wide economy to the tune of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of economic output. The results in this report will be invaluable to solidify the message that Maryland’s municipalities are where people want to work, live, and play.

A few highlights include that Maryland municipal governments:

In response to the upcoming implementation of the State's Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance program, also known as the Time to Care Act, MML is elated to negotiate and bring an alternative option to our members. We have partnered with other local government entities to present an alternative to the State plan for municipalities with 15 or more employees. This local government collaborative insurance plan can reduce your staff’s administrative burden and decrease the impact on your budget and your staff’s paycheck. A draft memorandum of agreement explains the operation of the collaborative.   

 Potential benefits of joining the collaborative:

•     Increased market power in securing a vendor to administer benefits for the broad co-op membership
•     Lower premiums than the State plan saves the employer and employee money
•     Avoid 15 months of pre-paying premiums before benefits become available (under the State program)
•     Reduced/shared administrative overhead costs in overseeing and managing the program
•     Security/simplicity of having one coordinated approval of plan structure and benefits for all participants

MML hosted a webinar with Bolton, the company that will administer the collaborative, on September 8. If you missed it or want to learn more, both the PowerPoint slides and a recording are available.  

The next step is time sensitive. If your municipality would like to participate in the collaborative, a letter of intent must be completed and returned to Bill Jorch, [email protected] no later than September 29. If meeting that deadline will be a problem, please contact Bill for more information.

Please note that there is a membership fee to join the collaborative, which is required to be paid by October 15, if you submit a letter of intent. Once a third-party insurance carrier is selected, a municipality may opt to not sign if the terms and rates are not acceptable, but the membership fee will not be refunded. The membership fee is an annual fee and will be in addition to the premium rate paid to the insurance carrier.

 Membership fees are as follows (payment details will be made available once the letter of intent has been received):

This Friday, learn about an opportunity to join other local governments in a collaborative insurance plan that may reduce your administrative burden and save your municipality time and money. The Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance program, also known as the Time to Care Act, impacts all employees and specifically employers (including municipal governments) with 15 or more employees. So, if your municipality has at least 15 employees or plans to expand to 15 or more in the future, you won't want to miss this webinar. 

David Johnson, Vice President from Bolton USA, will talk in detail about the collaborative opportunity and answer your questions. Sign-ups for the collaborative plan are due in the next few weeks, so this is the best opportunity to learn if it is the right option for your municipality!

Use the link below to register for the webinar. You must register in advance to receive the Zoom link. 

The "Featured Inquiry" is a new element to MD CommUnity, the League's members-only portal. The posts will highlight an interesting inquiry received by MML with the answer and resources posted to the community's "Ask MML" Discussion thread.