The Maryland General Assembly just wrapped up a very productive 2022 legislative session. We’ve pushed Maryland forward on issues like climate change, paid family leave, reproductive rights, ghost guns, cannabis legalization, and more.
The General Assembly passed the Climate Solutions Now Act, which will go into effect without the Governor’s signature. The legislation will put Maryland on a path toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the year 2045 through better energy efficiency standards for large buildings, investing in renewable energy, and transitioning the State’s vehicle fleet to electric vehicles. Also passed were bills to extend the tax credit for purchase of an electric vehicle and to assist school districts in purchasing electric school buses.
We overrode the Governor's veto of the Time to Care Act, a bill to create a paid family and medical leave system in Maryland. The new law will allow Marylanders up to 12 weeks of partially paid leave to care for a new child or a family member with a serious medical condition. The legislation is a major victory for working families and was a long time in the making.
In the wake of new abortion restrictions in other states, the General Assembly acted to protect a woman's right to choose what is best for her and her family. The Abortion Care Access Act, vetoed by the Governor and overridden by the legislature, lifts outdated physician-only restrictions, creates a fund for qualified health care practitioners seeking training, and prohibits insurers from charging copays or coinsurance when a woman exercises her right to choose. At its core, the legislation helps provide equity in reproductive health care coverage, especially for Marylanders with the lowest incomes. To that end, the General Assembly also passed the Healthy Babies Equity Act, which ensures Medicaid coverage for pregnancy and infancy regardless of a person’s immigration status.
The proliferation of unserialized "ghost guns," such as the one used in a shooting at nearby Magruder High School in January, is a troubling nationwide trend. Many communities are calling for common-sense reforms to get these weapons off their streets. The General Assembly passed legislation that will prohibit these guns in Maryland; the bill will go into effect without the Governor’s signature.
Maryland is moving forward with the legalization of cannabis. The General Assembly passed HB 1, which puts the issue on the ballot in November for the voters' approval. We also passed an implementation bill, contingent on the voter referendum passing. That bill will allow for expungement of prior marijuana possession convictions and allow those currently imprisoned for marijuana possession to apply for a reduced sentence. Home cultivation of two plants and possession of up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana would be legal.
One of House Speaker Adrienne Jones’ top priorities this legislative session was assisting working families with the ever-growing need for affordable child care. The General Assembly passed a package of bills to provide grants to child care providers, create a $35 million loan fund for construction and expansion of child care facilities, provide retention and new hire bonuses to child care staff, and make it faster and easier for low-income families to get financial assistance from the State.
The General Assembly also made progress this session in passing legislation to protect renters from housing instability. Among the bills sent to the Governor are legislation ensuring landlords comply with rental license requirements and pausing evictions while a tenant’s emergency rental assistance application is pending.
Other important legislation we passed to protect Marylanders’ economic security were bills to expand Medicaid to cover basic dental services and to cap monthly co-payments for insulin at $30. My legislation to establish an Earned Income Tax Credit Assistance Program to help low-income residents more easily get their EITC refund has already been signed into law by the Governor. On the Governor's desk are my bills to provide extra weeks of unemployment benefits during periods of high unemployment and to reuse excess State-owned properties to build more affordable housing.
One of the concerns I often hear from constituents is pedestrian and bicyclist safety. The General Assembly passed my bill to require public disclosure of safety deficiencies at each site of a pedestrian or bicyclist fatality that occurs on a state roadway. The bill was one of the top priorities of the legislature’s Transit Caucus, for which I serve as Secretary. We also passed and overrode a veto to boost investment in MARC rail projects.
The Great Maryland Outdoors Act will provide overdue support to Maryland’s state parks. During the pandemic, patronage to Maryland parks increased by 45% and many parks were unable to support the influx of visitors. This bill helps rectify decades of underfunding by addressing maintenance backlogs, expanding trail and transportation access, boosting staffing, and strengthening historic preservation in parks across the state.
The General Assembly worked with the Governor to create a new tax credit for people age 65+. Starting next year, individuals making up to $100,000 will receive a $1,000 credit; married couples who file jointly who make up to $150,000 will receive a $1,750 credit. The credit will eliminate income taxes for low-income seniors and reduce income taxes for about 80% of all seniors. This was part of a broad deal on taxes and the budget between the legislature and the Governor, which also exempted certain essential items from the sales tax, including certain baby products, oral hygiene products, and diabetic supplies.
Montgomery County had a successful legislative session with respect to the state budget. Bus rapid transit in the county will benefit immensely from new one-time and ongoing funding. We secured funding for repairs and upgrades to MCPS school playgrounds. All of District 17’s funding requests were fully funded: the Blohm Park trail project in Gaithersburg, ADA improvements at the F. Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, and capital funding for Montgomery History and the Montgomery County Muslim Foundation.
Thank you to all of the residents of Gaithersburg and Rockville who contacted my office this session. Your visits, phone calls, letters, and emails are appreciated. Have questions about topics I didn’t address in this letter? Please reach out and ask! Even though the legislative session is over, my legislative office will continue to operate, albeit at a reduced capacity. Please reach out if there is anything I can do to assist you with state agencies or to share your opinion.
Best,
Julie Palakovich Carr
Delegate, District 17