Maryland Has
a New Heat Standard that requires all workers to have
access to water, shade, and rest breaks when temperatures exceed 80 degrees —
it joins just a handful of other states that have standards protecting workers
from extreme heat. There is no federal heat standard
In Maryland,
workers now must be provided with at least 32oz of water, shaded breaks, and
training on the symptoms of heat illness, including prevention. The regulations
apply to both indoor and outdoor worksites where the index can be regularly in excess of 80
degrees.
When the
heat index exceeds 90 degrees, workers must have ten minutes of cooled rest
(taken in the AC or shade) for every two hours' worth of work. At a 100 degree heat index, that rest period
increases to fifteen minutes for every hour worked
When high
heat procedures are in place, employers must monitor for heat sickness via
phone or radio, the buddy system, or other alternative means. Employers must keep written heat plans and
must also include procedures for acclimatizing workers to heat.
The
Occupational Safety and Health Administration reports that 50-70% of outdoor
heat-related fatalities occur within the first few days of working in a warm or
hot environment when the body hasn’t had time to adjust. In the thirty year
span between 1992 and 2022, nearly 1,000 workers across all industry sectors
have died from heat exposure according to data from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics
Pay
Transparency in Job Postings
The new pay
transparency legislation enacted this year imposes an obligation on Maryland
employers to include information about the wage range for any position that the
employer posts in an internal or external forum. An employer will now be required to disclose
the “wage range” for a position as part of the posting and defines “wage range”
as the minimum and maximum hourly rate or salary for the position as set in
good faith by the employer.
Mandatory
Disclosures in Pay Statements
Maryland
employers will now be required to provide specified information to employees
every payday regarding their compensation. The information that employers are
required to provide to employees under the new law includes:
·
The employer’s
legal name as registered with the State of Maryland, as well as the employer’s
address and telephone number;
·
The date of
payment and the dates of the payroll period to which the payment relates;
·
The number of
hours worked by the employee during the pay period (this information does not
need to be included for employees who are working in positions that are exempt
for purposes of the State’s overtime law);
·
The employee’s
rate of pay;
·
The gross and net
pay earned during the pay period;
·
The amount and
name of all deductions from the employee’s pay;
·
A list of any
additional types of pay being received by the employee in the paycheck, such as
commissions or bonuses; and
·
If the employee
is paid at a piece rate, the applicable piece rate and the number of pieces
completed at each such rate.
Paid
Family and Medical Leave Insurance Program Changes Employers can opt for a commercial
or self-insured plan if they meet specific requirements. This law affects all
Maryland employers with at least one employee.
HB0602
expands protections in the Equal Pay for Equal Work Law to include pay discrimination based on sexual orientation
and military status, covering service members and their families.
HB38 prohibits Baltimore's Mayor and City
Council from requiring new off-street parking for residential developments near
public transit stations. This aims to promote the use of public transportation.
HB1032
establishes a new
signage program to guide drivers to tourist attractions, enhancing travel experiences.
HB1507/SB70
mandates that the Maryland Transit Administration must assess the impact of any service
cuts or cancellations on bus routes and publicly share this information ahead of public
hearings.
HB43/SB316 allows licensed drivers to operate
golf carts on certain roads,
HB337/SB315 increases penalties for drivers who
fail to yield to cyclists in designated lanes.
HB161/SB277 allows certain individuals, including
those recently released from correctional facilities, to obtain state ID cards
without fees.
HB1206
establishes a Maryland-Ireland
Trade Commission to
enhance trade relations,
HB981 requires state services to improve
accessibility for individuals with limited English proficiency.
The
snakehead bill,
which would christen the toothy, invasive species, nicknamed “frankenfish,” as
the Chesapeake Channa. The hope is that people who would turn their noses up at
a meal of snakehead might take a chance on channa.
House Bill
728 and Senate Bill 705 direct the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange to apply for a federal
waiver that would let residents buy insurance on the state’s marketplace
regardless of their documentation status. If approved, it could open the door for thousands of
undocumented and uninsured state residents who are currently barred from using
the marketplace to go there for affordable health care plans.
Another bill
will shield health
care providers in Maryland from liability if they help out-of-state patients
obtain gender-affirming care, so long as the services provided are legal in Maryland. SB
119 also protects those who seek gender-affirming care in Maryland from being
surrendered back to a state where the treatment is prohibited.
SB 35 and HB
666 will mean a few extra
dollars a month for older Marylanders getting federal food assistance. The state currently gives an extra
$40 a month to those aged 62 and above in the federal Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program, or food stamps. The new law lowers the eligibility age to
60 and boosts the monthly benefit to $50 to help pay for groceries.
The Renters’ Rights and Stabilization Act creates a state
Office of Tenants and Landlord Affairs that will help tenants know their
protections and legal recourse under Maryland law. It also raises certain fees
in the eviction process to reduce the number of unnecessary evictions.
The
Tenant Safety Act
will enable multiple
tenants to jointly file a complaint with the local district court and
collectively put rent payments in escrow while the complaint is adjudicated.
A law
creating the Center
for Firearm Violence Prevention and Intervention, which will take a data-driven, public health approach
to gun violence prevention in the last legislature. The center, housed in the
state Department of Health, will be geared toward collaboration between state
and local government agencies, hospitals and community-based violence
intervention programs.
SB
652requires the Department of Juvenile Services to report how many juveniles in its
care were shot or shot someone else, along with their ages and county of residence. That report,
due by Dec. 1 every year, must describe actions taken by the agency after each
incident.
Future
convictions for first-degree rape will not be eligible for a decrease in prison
time for good behavior under SB 1098.
The “Kids
Code” laws will
require default privacy settings and safety measures for children using online
platforms. The law limits the collection of data, including geolocation data, from minors by
social media and other companies, as well as sale of that data, among other
requirements. A similar California law has been challenged in court, but not
the Maryland law – so far.
Maryland’s
treasurer is now among the list of state officials who cannot solicit or
receive campaign donations during legislative sessions.
Minor
league ballplayers in Maryland will be exempt from state wage and hour laws under HB 702 and SB 466. The
players, who are already paid under union contracts, are exempt from federal
minimum wage and overtime rules, and the law extends that to state law, too.
Retailers
who sell products containing kratom cannot sell products not recognized by the
Food and Drug Administration or that do not meet new labeling requirements. They are also
barred from marketing it to minors. Kratom, derived from an evergreen tree
native to Southeast Asia, is considered a substitute for opium and can be a
stimulant at low doses. At higher doses, the herbal extract can have euphoric
or sedative effects.
The DRIVE
Act — short for the
Distributed Renewable Integration and Vehicle Electrification Act — sets
guidelines for utilities to create robust charging programs for electric
vehicles.
A measure
long sought by public health and environmental advocates lays out how
artificial turf should be removed, replaced and disposed of.
A law that
sets greenhouse gas emissions limits for cement producers and manufacturers.
A law that
updates the state’s Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area
Protection Program to incorporate climate resilience, environmental
justice, and equity measures. The bill also requires state and local
governments to update maps of so-called critical areas at regular intervals.
A law
that codifies the rights of citizens to sue individuals or entities that
pollute local waterways. The legislation was a reaction to a 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision
that sought to limit what constitutes a navigable waterway, making it harder
for polluters to be targeted in litigation.
This material was gathered from articles in Maryland Matters and other news outlets.
