Julie’s Bills — 2024 Legislative Session

Helping Maryland families

  • Universal Free School Meals: Children cannot succeed in school if they are hungry. School meal programs improve academic achievement, attendance, and classroom behavior. Congress made school meals free for all students during the pandemic, but that policy expired. Now the parents and guardians of almost 500,000 children in Maryland have lost this important financial support. This bill requires the State to continue to provide free school meals to all students. (Amended into a study bill; the Senate cross-file was signed into law.)

  • Expansion of Child Tax Credit: Last year, we passed legislation to expand the Maryland Child Tax Credit, granting the credit to an estimated 40,000 additional low-income families with kids. This year, I am continuing my efforts to further expand this important poverty reduction tool to include more low- and middle-income families, providing $750 for each child under 6 and $500 for each child ages 6-17. The bill is paid for by closing tax loopholes used by large corporations and ultra-wealthy individuals. (Part of the bill was amended into another bill, which passed the House but didn’t make it across the finish line in the Senate.)

  • Price Cap on EpiPens: The price of epinephrine auto-injectors (aka EpiPens) has increased 400% since 2007, making this life-saving medication unaffordable for many patients with severe food allergies. Due to the cost, many decide to risk it and forgo filling their prescription, even though it may cost them their lives. This bill limits out-of-pocket expenses on EpiPens to $60 so that no Marylander with a life-threatening allergy is forced to go without this important medicine.

  • Removing Barriers to Affordable Housing: Repeals unnecessary and outdated requirements placed on the Housing Opportunities Commission that aren’t placed on other affordable housing developers in our county. (Signed into law)

  • Surplus Property as Affordable Housing: I’m following up on a 2022 law I sponsored that requires the State to assess surplus state property for potential reuse as affordable housing. The new bill will give the Department of Housing and Community Development more flexibility in identifying suitable properties. (Signed into law)

  • Tax Cuts for Working Families: Counties should be able to make their local income taxes progressive—with the wealthy paying a higher rate than low- or middle-income residents. State and federal taxes are structured this way because is more fair than a flat tax. Half of Maryland counties, including Montgomery County, aren’t able to use a law I previously sponsored to create tiered local income taxes in a revenue-neutral way. This bill will allow more counties to provide tax relief to low- and middle-income residents.

  • Credit Reporting Reforms: Marylanders are often burdened by obsolete and outdated information in their credit reports when seeking jobs, mortgages, and loans. This bill will help prevent the inclusion of certain obsolete information on credit reports by conforming state law with the stronger provisions in federal law. (Passed both chambers)

Education and child care

  • Student Mental Health: This bill would require every school district to provide middle and high school students with the phone number for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline in their school handbooks and on their student IDs. This would ensure that life-saving information is at students’ fingertips if they are experiencing a mental health crisis or may be contemplating suicide. (Signed into law.)

  • Child Care Professional Development: We’re facing a critical shortage in child care providers. This bill reforms the Child Care Career and Professional Development Fund to increase post-graduation service commitments and to encourage bi-lingual coursework in early childhood education. (Signed into law)

  • Education Public Notice Modernization: Updates how local boards of education fulfill certain public notice requirements by allowing for electronic posting, thus saving money and more effectively reaching the public. (Signed into law)

  • School Financial Accountability: Requires public school districts to publicly report on actions taken to address audit deficiencies identified by the State. (Signed into law)

  • Food Allergies in Child Care: The number of kids with food allergies has been growing yet many child care providers may not know the proper precautions to take. This bill will have the Department of Education prepare guidelines and a model policy for child care providers to keep kids in their care safe. (Signed into law)

Transportation and Road Safety

  • Sound Cameras for Noisy Vehicles: Too many neighborhoods are regularly disturbed by the noise of vehicles with illegally modified exhaust systems. This legislation would allow local governments to use automated technology to detect and ticket excessively loud vehicles. (Passed both chambers)

  • Vision Zero Advisory Commission: The state adopted Vision Zero in 2019, which committed us to achieving the goal of no roadway fatalities or serious injuries by 2030. This bill will establish a commission to advise the State on the implementation of Vision Zero. (The Senate cross-file passed both chambers)

  • Roadway Safety in MoCo: Our County Council recently passed legislation to improve pedestrian and bicyclist safety on local roads. The new county law prohibits vehicles from turning right on red and requires a leading pedestrian interval in the most urban areas of the county. This bill complements the new county law by requiring the State Highway Administration to make the same changes at state intersections in downtown areas in MoCo. (Withdrawn)

Election Reforms

  • Reform Legislative Appointments: Maryland’s state constitution doesn’t allow for special elections to fill vacancies in the General Assembly. This bill will ensure that the appointment process is transparent and includes appropriate public notice and participation. (Passed the House)

  • Lieutenant Governor Selection: Currently, candidates for Governor have to pick their running mate immediately upon filing to run in the primary election. This bill allows running mates to be chosen after the primary election, expanding the pool of viable, qualified nominees for Lieutenant Governor. (The Senate cross-file passed the Senate)

  • Cracking Down on Scam PACs: It’s difficult to prosecute fraudsters who create political action committees (PACs) that purport to raise money for a certain candidate or cause, only to keep the money for themselves or funnel it money into businesses they own. This bill will make it harder for scam PACs to hide their practices and give more tools for enforcement. (The Senate cross-file passed the Senate)

  • Special Elections for School Board Vacancies: Currently, vacancies on the Montgomery County Board of Education are filled by an appointment made by the remaining members of the board. My legislation would give voters the ability to fill vacancies on the board through a special election at the next congressional election. (Passed the Montgomery County House Delegation)

  • Election Judge Recruitment: Shortages of election judges have become a pressing issue in Maryland in the last several elections. This bill aims to recruit more election judges by ensuring that unemployed Marylanders don't lose their unemployment benefits if they serve in this temporary civic role. (Passed both chambers)

Environmental Protection

  • Endangered Species Act Revisions: Ensures the continued protection of our state's biodiversity by codifying in law existing practices and regulations regarding endangered species protections, including requiring routine reviews of the state’s protected species lists and requiring scientific evidence to list or delist a species. (Passed both chambers)