Dear Neighbor,
I am proud to share with you that 15 bills that I sponsored during this year’s legislative session have been signed by the Governor and will become law. Each bill that passes the General Assembly includes an effective date, except emergency bills, which become law when they are signed. As of June 1, four of my sponsored bills, as well as several other measures that I worked on or supported on behalf of our communities, are now law:
Emergency Legislation
Senate Bill 117 – Health – Newborn Screening Program – Implementation of Testing limits regulatory delays in implementing life-saving screenings for rare diseases, such as Infantile Krabbe Disease, to save the lives of children across our State.
Senate Bill 1101 – Higher Education – Maryland Police Officers and Probation Agents Scholarship Program – Alterations allows students who receive financial aid from the Maryland Police Officers and Probation Agents Scholarship Program to use their award at a community college in addition to the State’s public four-year institutions. There is $8.5 million set aside for this program.
Senate Bill 1178 – Higher Education – Douglas J. J. Peters Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq Conflicts Scholarship – Repeal of Service Terminal Date removes vague language in the statute governing the Douglas J. J. Peters Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq Conflicts Scholarship that was denying some veterans and their family members of these conflicts access to this scholarship.
House Bill 834 – Calvert County – Ethics – Conflict of Interest and Commissioner Expulsion was introduced by the Calvert County Delegation at the request of concerned citizens and requires the County to enact a law or regulation that authorizes the removal of a county elected official from office for violating conflict-of-interest statutes.
All four of these bills became law upon being signed on April 25, 2024.
Bills Effective June 1, 2024
House Bill 805 – Cannabis – Licensee Locations – Restrictions included provisions and accomplish the same goal as Senate Bill 158 which I introduced in response to the concerns of the residents of the 7th District regarding the potential major expansion of the cannabis facility located in the Critical Area in Abell. As a result, there will be no further expansion of the buildings on this property. This legislation also includes other revisions to the zoning provisions in last year’s cannabis reform bill to ensure that local governments have flexibility to establish distance limitations between cannabis dispensaries and residential areas.
Senate Bill 166 – Waterway Incident Notification System (WINS) – Study required the Maryland Department of Emergency Management to study and create a plan to implement a Waterway Incident Notification System that would notify members of the public, including recreational boaters and commercial watermen, of waterway emergencies. This would be similar to an Amber, Silver, or Local Emergency Alert specifically to notify boaters on the waterways.
Senate Bill 589 – Tri-County Council for Southern Maryland – Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission – Funding increases the State’s annual funding for the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission (SMADC) from $900,000 to $1,000,000. This legislation also guarantees future State support for this important resource for Southern Maryland farmers by repealing the sunset of this funding requirement.
Senate Bill 114 – Workgroup to Study the Fiscal and Operational Viability of Public-Private Partnerships for Calvert County Public Schools establishes a workgroup to study using public-private partnerships for financing, constructing, maintaining, and operating schools in Calvert County. This workgroup is required to report to the General Assembly by December 31, 2024.
While the legislature may not be in session, our work on behalf of the people of District 29 never stops. As always, please do not hesitate to contact me or my office with any questions or concerns you may have with State government. Thank you for the opportunity to represent you in the Senate of Maryland.
Sincerely,
Senator Jack Bailey