Maryland Municipal League (MML) leadership invites you to learn more about an important municipal rail safety communication system. On Thursday, April 25 from 12:00-1:00 p.m., MML will be hosting a webinar in partnership with Maryland Class I freight carriers to facilitate increased direct communication between local governments and rail operators. Presenters from CSX and Norfolk Southern will focus on existing information sources that will assist local leaders and municipalities to better understand details about freight rail shipments and how best to coordinate emergency response.

Rail safety has been an important issue for years touching on public health, emergency response, infrastructure damage, and environmental impact. Rail has been identified as an anticipated transportation option with the loss of the Key Bridge for the current trucking industry routes of hazardous materials through the I-95 corridor. We highly encourage you or a representative from your municipality to participate in the webinar.

Gain insights from our esteemed panelists as they discuss MML's legislative objectives, the Maryland state budget, and other important municipal issues and information that emerged from the Maryland General Assembly's 2024 legislative session. Don't miss out on this opportunity to hear how this year's legislative session may impact Maryland's cities and towns. 

Watch here!

Join MML for a Lunch and Learn: Legislative Wrap Up webinar on the Maryland General Assembly’s 2024 legislative session.

Gain insights from our esteemed panelists as we discuss MML's legislative objectives, the Maryland state budget, and other important municipal issues and information.

MML's priority bill, HB 282, as passed by the House would have permitted municipalities that do not maintain a police force to use a technician, as opposed to a law enforcement officer, to review speed camera images and sign the citations.

The bill garnered significant support but failed to receive a vote in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee before the close of the General Assembly Session.

Local governments will soon have the authority to permit the use of golf carts on certain roads in their jurisdiction per the passage of HB 43 / SB 316, which was supported by MML There are certain criteria that must be met in order for the golf cart to operate and for the local government to designate certain road segments for golf cart use.

"Exhibition driving" is now a defined term and is prohibited on public roads in the State, as a result of the passage of HB 601 / SB 442. MML Municipalities may also designate a "special event zone" for certain automotive events that occur on a roadway, which allows additional safety measures to be put in place such as signage, traffic control devices, and a reduction in the speed limit.

HB 805 made alterations to aspects of the adult-use cannabis law that pertain to land use; MML supported amendments were adopted. The changes include:

• Adding places of worship to the list of pre-existing properties that may not be located within 500 feet of a dispensary.
• Increasing the distance a local government may set between dispensaries from 1,000 feet to half a mile.
• Allowing local governments to set the distance a dispensary may operate from a residential zone to up to 100 feet or the same distance from a residential zone required for alcohol retail stores. 
• Prohibiting local governments from adopting an ordinance that places zoning requirements on dispensaries that are more burdensome than those placed on alcohol retail stores. 
• Clarifying that there is a restriction on local governments regarding zoning requirements only for certain exclusively outdoor growers.
• Adding a complaint process against dispensaries.

Another bill made changes to the cannabis law beyond land use. HB 253 alters a drafting error in the law and clarifies that the local government where an on-site consumption facility is planning to locate sets the laws and policies that govern that on-site consumption facility.

On April 10, 2024, the EPA announced the final National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six PFAS. The NPDWR establishes legally enforceable levels, called Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs), for six PFAS in drinking water: PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA, and HFPO-DA as contaminants with individual MCLs, and PFAS mixtures containing at least two or more of PFHxS, PFNA, HFPO-DA, and PFBS using a Hazard Index MCL to account for the combined and co-occurring levels of these PFAS in drinking water. EPA also finalized health-based, non-enforceable Maximum Contaminant Level Goals (MCLGs) for these PFAS. 

The final rule requires:

More modifications were made to the State's Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program in HB 571 / SB 485, a bill supported by MML with amendments. The first change is that the implementation of the program is pushed back: claims open now on July 1, 2026 (delayed from January 1, 2026) and for those employers that plan to use the State plan, mandatory contributions begin on July 1, 2025 (delayed from October 1, 2024). Secondly, for those employers that plan to use a third-party insurer, the State will levy an application fee to cover administrative costs.

With the passage of HB 649 / SB 525, all employers in the State will now need to include the wage range and benefits associated with a position when publishing a job posting. Onerous provisions relating to employer liability were removed via amendment, leaving only small fines for non-compliance. 

The following legislation has budgetary implications for Maryland municipalities and was passed or died in the last week of the Maryland General Assembly’s 2024 session.

Budget/BRFA – SB 360/HB 350 & SB 362/HB 352 (Passed) – As passed by the Senate in early March, this year’s budget and accompanying Budget Reconciliation and Financing Act (BRFA) would have reduced local Highway User Revenues (HUR) in FY 26 & FY 27. MML and MACo pushed back against the need to codify those out-year reductions in this year’s budget. The House of Delegates also pushed back and identified some new revenue sources to fund transportation and education moving forward. The compromise deal resulted in an additional $350 million for the State which allows for HURs to be fully funded.  

HB 538, the Governor's Housing Expansion bill, passed with several amendments. This bill requires local jurisdictions to allow (1) new manufactured homes and modular dwellings in zones that allow single-family residential uses and (2) increased densities and uses in specified zoning areas for “qualified projects” (which include specified amounts of affordable housing). The bill prohibits a local jurisdiction from imposing unreasonable limitations or requirements on a qualified project or requiring a qualified project to be reviewed at more than a specified number of public hearings. The bill also establishes a Historic Property Revitalization Director within the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The bill takes effect January 1, 2025.

HB 693, the Governor's Renters' Rights and Stabilization bill, also passed with amendments. This measure increases the cost of filing eviction and other landlord-tenant cases in court. The bill also establishes the Office of Tenant and Landlord Affairs (OTLA) in the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), extends the period between granting judgment for possession in favor of a landlord and the execution of the warrant of restitution, establishes a tenant’s right of first refusal (and an exclusive negotiation period) prior to the sale of certain residential rental property, and expands the categories of eviction data that must be collected by the Judiciary and provided to DHCD.

While the 2024 legislative session nears its conclusion Sine Die, it's never too early to start thinking about next year!

Is there a legislative matter that your municipality, chapter or department would like to see considered as an MML Legislative Priority for the 2025 Legislative session? Complete the 2025 Legislative Action Request (LAR) form by May 31.

MML's priority bill, HB 282, had its hearing in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on March 26, after passing through the House chamber. As a result of amendments added by the House the bill now allows municipalities that do not maintain a police force to use a trained technician, as opposed to a law enforcement officer, to review speed camera images and sign citations. MML will continue to advocate for passage of this legislation through the Senate. For questions, please contact Bill Jorch, [email protected].

This week, the Biden-Harris Administration announced $3.33 billion in grant awards for 132 projects through the Reconnecting Communities Pilot and Neighborhood Access and Equity discretionary grant programs as part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda. The funding is for communities that were cut off by transportation infrastructure years ago that left many neighborhoods without direct access to opportunities such as schools, places to worship, medical offices, and jobs.

The Department of Transportation is awarding 72 Planning grants, 52 Capital Construction grants, and 8 Regional Planning grants.

The Partnership for Action Learning in Sustainability (PALS) was established in 2012 to give students “real life” experience and provide Maryland communities access to the University of Maryland’s expertise in fields ranging from health care, planning, real estate finance, environmentalism, information technology, and more.

Students address issues like municipal service provision and management, economic development, environmental shifts, park and streetscape design, transportation operations, and more in their coursework. Projects have included the cost-effectiveness of LED streetlights and implementation plan, an examination of micro-mobility and safe routes to school, the feasibility of expanding a local airport, and other real, practical projects with an emphasis on scheduling, best practices, implementation, and monitoring.

This Friday, March 22, is World Water Day.  Celebrate by reading up on how you can protect the streams and waterways that run through your community.

Protect Local Waterways is a new award-winning web resource on how local leaders can help support the economy, public health, education, and infrastructure while protecting their communities' environmental assets. Created by local officials for local officials, this website includes an extensive learning library spanning 11 environmental topics. From understanding the benefits of trees to building community buy-in on environmental behaviors, this learning library is the perfect place to start. Take action today to secure fishable, swimmable, and drinkable water for your municipality. Visit our website.  

Now that we are more than halfway through the General Assembly session, bills are starting to move. Below are a few transportation-related bills, supported by MML, all of which have already received favorable reports by their respective committees and passed out of their chamber of origin. 

HB 43 - This bill is slightly amended from the version initially introduced and now includes a few additional guardrails. It now allows local governments to designate roads under their jurisdiction as roads on which golf carts may operate, under certain conditions; the road must be 30 MPH or lower and the golf cart must operate only between dawn and dusk unless it has State Highway Administration (SHA) approved lights, drive on the far right of the lane, and contain no more passengers than there are seats. This new authority would allow a new and unique transportation option to local governments.

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.