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There have been some important changes in the Senate and house. Here are some of the new Committee leaders:
· Melony Griffith is replacing Delores Kelley on the Senate Finance Committee,
· Brian Feldman is heading up the Senate Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee (formerly the Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee, formerly headed by Paul Pinsky who has taken a position in the Moore administration), and
· Ben Barnes is replacing Maggie McIntosh on the House Appropriations Committee.
· Joseline Pena-Melnyk will be the new Chair of the Health and Government Affairs Committee
Committee hearings will be both virtual and in person. More specifics concerning process and dates for hearings and testimony are expected from the committees shortly.
Here are some of the pre-filed bills that caught my eye.
Criminal Justice | The Child Victims Act of 2023 allows a person to file a suit for damages against an abuser “at any time” going forward. The bill, which has been introduced three times over the last four years, would also create a two year “lookback window” to allow victims previously barred from filing claims to do so during a limited period of time. (HB0001, Delegate Wilson) |
Gun Control | Gun Industry Accountability Act of 2023 prohibits certain firearm industry members from knowingly or recklessly creating, maintaining, or contributing to harm to the public through the sale, manufacture, importation, or marketing of a firearm–related product. (SB0113, Senator Waldstreicher) |
Maryland Police Gun Center Protective Orders ensures that local police offices collect and track guns from persons subject to a protective order. (HB0003, Delegate Bartlett) | |
Gun Safety Act of 2023 prohibits a person from knowingly wearing, carrying or transporting a firearm within 100 feet near a place of public accommodation. Such places would include hotels, movie theaters and retail stores. The current law states that a person cannot carry a firearm at places including legislative buildings, state parks, school property, and within 1,000 feet of a demonstration in a public place. (SB0001, Senator Waldstreicher) | |
Labor | Fight for Fifteen Acceleration Act of 2023 accelerates by 2 years the State minimum wage to achieve $15 per hour starting July 1, 2024 and repeals the authority of the Board of Public Works to temporarily suspend such increases. 85% of the State minimum wage will be in effect if the employee is under 18 years. (SB0081, Senator Waldstreicher) |
Universal Basic Income for Transition-Age Youth provides for the economic security of individuals aging out of the out-of-home placement program and provides that payments made under the Program may not be considered income or resources for purposes of determining eligibility for certain benefits. (HB0108, Delegate Acevero) | |
Transportation | Maryland Rail Investment Act of 2023 establishes the Maryland Rail Authority (MRA) to oversee such operations as MARC service; extending MARC to Newark, DE, Northern Virginia, and Western Maryland; replacing the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel; and constructing the Southern Maryland Rapid Transit System. (HB0074, Delegate Korman) |
HOW TO ADVOCATE FOR THESE BILLS
Call or send an email to your legislators using the contact information found. You can find who your legislators are on the Maryland Legislative Coalition website http://mdlegislative.com under Legislators.
If you would like to include a short description of the bills, you can include the descriptions shown above. You are also encouraged to include any details of why you think this bill is important.
Dear (legislator),
My name is _________ and my address is ______________. I am writing to let you know that the following bill(s) is(are) important to me and to all Marylanders. I would like to request that you be a champion for these bills and help them get passed quickly.
Each of these bills is important for Maryland and I support them and would like your help in getting them passed. If you are not on the relevant committee, I would appreciate your voting for them during session. If you are on the relevant committee, I hope you will fight for them and support the sponsors as much as possible.
Thank you for your consideration,
(name)
