Senator Eckardt Wrap Up

Senator Addie Eckardt, District 37 2018 End of Session Wrap Up April 10, 2018

The Maryland General Assembly adjourned on April 9, 2018; thank you to all who participated in making this year’s legislative process so successful. Despite some areas of disagreement, both the Administration and the General Assembly were able to find common ground and work in a bipartisan fashion on many important policy initiatives to benefit Marylanders during this productive session. During the interim, please do not hesitate to reach out to my office to discuss recent or future legislation. Fiscal Year 2019 Operating Budget While I was hoping to give more back to taxpayers, the final FY 2018 budget ($44.4 billion), is a product of compromise between both parties, the Governor, and the legislature. The budget achieves the Spending Affordability Committee goals while preserving more than $1.0 billion in reserves. Growth has been limited to only $951 million, or 2.2%, with tax reduction through an increase in the standard deduction and an expansion of eligibility for the Earned Income Tax Credit, and an increased pension benefit for veterans and correctional officers. Public school funding exceeds $6.5 billion, including $15 million in new State funding to promote safety at our schools. Regarding higher education, funding for Maryland’s public colleges and universities is increased while tuition growth is limited. Maryland will continue to provide vital health care services; Medicaid funding will allow the State to provide coverage to 1.4 million residents; a 3.5% rate increase will be provided to serve the developmentally disabled and those with behavioral health needs. The fourth consecutive balanced budget under Governor Hogan, does not resort to any kind of budgeting gimmicks such as shifting funds out of dedicated accounts, high bond sale premiums, or “running up the credit card.”. Reports given to the General Assembly indicate that without structural changes, Maryland’s spending growth will outpace revenue growth by 1.2% annually. While long-term reform to mandates are needed, this budget holds the line for a fourth straight year; to remain balanced despite the revenue/spending imbalance, this is a serious achievement for Maryland. Lastly, there are no new taxes along with this budget; this budget demonstrates Maryland’s commitment to fiscal responsibility and being open for business. Fiscal Year 2019 Local Initiatives in the Capital Budget   DORCHESTER COUNTY TOTAL Chesapeake Grove – Senior Housing and Intergenerational Center 1,050,000 Patriot Point 375,000 Maces Lane Community Center 200,000 DORCHESTER COUNTY TOTAL 1,625,000   TALBOT COUNTY TOTAL YMCA Senior Center in St. Michaels 500,000 Avalon Theatre 200,000 TALBOT COUNTY TOTAL 700,000   WICOMICO COUNTY TOTAL Maryland Food Bank 3,500,000 Salisbury Animal Health Laboratory 4,975,000 Arthur Perdue Stadium 580,000 City of Salisbury 500,000 Rotary Labyrinth 100,000 WICOMICO COUNTY TOTAL 9,655,000 Senator Eckardt’s 2018 Passed Sponsored Legislation SJ 6 – Commemorating the Bicentennial of the Birth of Frederick Douglass This joint resolution commemorates the bicentennial of the birth of Frederick Douglass, the noted African-American orator, abolitionist, and social reformer. SB 3 – Dorchester County – Hurlock – Alcoholic Beverages – Place-of-Worship or School Distance Restrictions SB 3 exempts the issuance of a Class B (on-sale) beer, wine, and liquor (BWL) license in the Town of Hurlock from the general prohibition against issuing an alcoholic beverages license to an establishment that is within 300 feet of a place of worship or a public or nonpublic school in Dorchester County. This bill takes effect July 1, 2018. SB 51 – Dorchester County – Alcoholic Beverages – Beer and Wine Festivals SB 51 authorizes the Dorchester County Board of License Commissioners to approve more than one beer and wine festival in Dorchester County each year and makes conforming changes. This bill requires the board to approve, rather than choose, a location for a festival that is not already licensed and prohibits the board from approving more than one festival for any one weekend. This bill takes effect July 1, 2018. SB 140 – Dorchester County – Alcoholic Beverages – Class C Per Diem Licenses – Catering Club Events SB 140 specifies that a holder of a Class C per diem beer license, a Class C per diem beer and wine (BW) license, or a Class C per diem beer, wine, and liquor (BWL) license may only cater an event conducted by a club. This bill takes effect July 1, 2018. SB 171 – Talbot County Board of Education – Start Date of Term for Members This bill alters the start date of elected members of the Talbot County Board of Education from January 1 after the member’s election to December 1. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. SB 215 – Motor Vehicle Registration – Exception for Golf Carts – Town of Vienna This bill authorizes a person to operate a golf cart equipped with approved lighting in the Town of Vienna in Dorchester County between dawn and dusk on a local highway on which the maximum posted speed limit does not exceed 30 miles per hour. The Town of Vienna may designate locations within the town where a golf cart may be operated. The bill takes effect June 1, 2018.   SB 341 – Hunting – Required Outerwear – Daylight Fluorescent Pink This bill authorizes hunters (and those who accompany, aid, or assist them) to wear specified daylight fluorescent pink clothing in lieu of the current requirement to wear specified daylight fluorescent orange clothing while hunting. The Department of Natural Resources is authorized to define “daylight fluorescent pink” in regulations. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018. SB 711 – Health Occupations – Applications for Renewal of Licenses, Permits, Certifications, or Registrations – Available by Mail This bill requires a health occupations board to send, by first-class mail, a renewal application at the request of a licensee, permit holder, certificate holder, or registrant, if the board otherwise sends renewal notices or other specified documents exclusively by email. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. SB 968 – Task Force on Rural Internet, Broadband, Wireless, and Cellular Service – Study and Extension SB 968 expands the responsibilities of the Task Force on Rural Internet, Broadband, Wireless, and Cellular Service and extends the task force by one year. This bill takes effect June 1, 2018. Recommended Bills of the Tax Sale Task Force of 2017 SB 468 – Landlord and Tenant – Residential Leases – Water and Sewer Bills This bill requires a landlord of a building that contains one or two residential dwelling units, who requires a tenant to make payments for water or sewer utility services to the landlord, to (1) use a written lease that provides notice that the tenant is responsible for making payments for water or sewer utility services to the landlord and (2) provide a copy of the water or sewer bill to the tenant. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. SB 466/HB 556 – Estates and Trusts – Administration of Estates – Waiver of Fees This bill authorizes a register of wills to waive the fees for administration of a small estate or a regular estate with a value not exceeding $150,000 if the real property of the decedent is the only probate asset and is (1) to be transferred to the decedent’s spouse, descendant, sibling, or descendant of a sibling of the decedent who resides on the property or (2) encumbered by a lien and subject to a tax sale. The bill specifies requirements and procedures for obtaining the waiver. The bill has prospective application and, accordingly, does not apply to the estate of any decedent who died before the bill’s October 1, 2018 effective date. SB 709 – Environment – Water and Sewer Service This bill authorizes a political subdivision, a sanitary commission, or an authority that provides water and sewer services to (1) develop and implement service affordability programs to assist homeowners having difficulty making payments for water and sewer services and (2) disconnect service to specified vacant property under certain circumstances. If the applicable service entity disconnects water or sewer service to a vacant property pursuant to the bill, service must be restored under specified circumstances. The bill also expresses the General Assembly’s intent that homeowners have access to programs to assist them in making payment obligations for water and sewer services. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. SB 951 – Tax Sales – Vacant and Abandoned Property This bill makes multiple changes to the law governing tax sales in the State. The bill expands several provisions of the law that are only applicable in Baltimore City, authorizing each county or municipal corporation to, among other things, release liens to facilitate transfer of properties sold at tax sale, sell abandoned property for less than the total amount owed, and expedite the foreclosure of abandoned property. The bill also authorizes counties to withhold properties from sale that have been designated for redevelopment purposes and makes other conforming changes. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. SB 952 – Tax Sales – Homeowner Protections This bill authorizes a collector of property taxes to withhold from tax sale any residential property when the total taxes due, including interest and penalties, amount to less than $750. This bill also expands the required contents of specified notices. This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. Tax Reform Package SB 184/HB 365 – Income Tax – Personal Exemptions -- Alteration This bill clarifies that for State income tax purposes a taxpayer can deduct a personal exemption for the taxpayer, the taxpayer’s spouse, and eligible dependents. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018 and applies to tax years 2018 and beyond. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously. SB 318 – Income Tax – Standard Deduction – Alteration and Cost-of-Living Adjustments This bill alters the value of the standard deduction by increasing its maximum value to $2,250 for all single taxpayers and $4,500 for all taxpayers filing jointly. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018, and applies to tax years 2018 and forward. I had sponsored SB 830 – Income Tax – Standard Deduction – Inflation Adjustment; while this specific piece of legislation did not move, the substance of the bill was amended into SB 318. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously. SB 647/HB 856 – Earned Income Tax Credit – Individuals Without Qualifying Children – Repeal of Minimum Age Requirement This bill extends eligibility of the State and local earned income tax credits to individuals who do not have qualifying children and are between the ages of 18 and 24 years. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018, and applies to tax year 2018 and beyond. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously. SB 299 – Correctional Officers’ Retirement System – Membership This Administration bill makes specified employees of the Department of Juvenile Services (DJS) and Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) members of the Correctional Officers’ Retirement System (CORS) as a condition of their employment. It also requires that service credit earned in the Employees’ Pension System (EPS) be combined with service credit in CORS for specified individuals. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously. SB 996 – Income Tax – Subtraction Modification – Retirement Income (Hometown Heroes and Veterans Act of 2018) This bill expands the existing military retirement income tax subtraction modification by increasing from $10,000 to $15,000 the maximum amount of retirement income that can be excluded from Maryland adjusted gross income for purposes of calculating Maryland income tax liability. In order to qualify for the increased subtraction modification, the individual must be at least 55 years old. The bill also expands the existing State subtraction modification for retired law enforcement, fire, rescue, and emergency services personnel by extending eligibility to correctional officers. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018, and applies to tax year 2018 and beyond. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously. HB 1042 – Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System – Benefit Cap Increase This bill raises the cap on retirement allowances that may be paid to specified members of the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pension System (LEOPS) from 60% of the member’s average final compensation (AFC) to 65%. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018. This legislation passed the Senate unanimously and the House of Delegates with little opposition. Schools and Education SB 1265 – Maryland Safe to Learn Act of 2018 This bill makes comprehensive changes designed to improve the safety of the State’s public schools. It enhances the presence of school resource officers (SROs) and/or local law enforcement in or near public schools and requires SROs to complete specialized training. It establishes a School Safety Subcabinet, which also serves as the governing board for the Maryland Center for School Safety (MCSS). The mandated appropriation for MCSS operations is increased from $500,000 to at least $2.0 million, and the bill establishes a Safe Schools Fund to make grants to local school systems to assist in implementing the bill’s provisions. This bill takes effect June 1, 2018. After numerous amendments were added to better this bill, this legislation passed the Senate unanimously. SB 1243/HB 1783 – 21st Century School Facilities Act This bill makes comprehensive changes to public school construction funding and approval processes in the State, including (1) altering the name, composition, and role of the Interagency Committee on School Construction; (2) requiring periodic public school facilities assessments; (3) streamlining the State approval process for school construction projects; and (4) providing at least $400 million for public school construction annually as soon as practicable, including $10 million for school safety improvements. The bill takes effect June 1, 2018. On April 4, 2018, Governor Hogan vetoed this legislation; this veto was overridden by the legislative body on April 5, 2018. This legislation removes the Board of Public Works’ authority to adopt regulations and grant final approval with respect to public school construction projects and transfers this power to the IAC. By the removal of the historic oversight of the BPW, which is comprised of the governor, comptroller, and treasurer, the power is now given to an unelected and unaccountable IAC, which historically has included individuals with potential conflicts of interest. HB 1415 – Education – Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education  This bill extends the deadline for the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education to complete its work by one year. It also establishes or alters several programs and mandates funding for them beginning in fiscal 2019, including (1) a comprehensive teacher recruitment and outreach program; (2) the Maryland Early Literacy Initiative; (3) the Learning in Extended Academic Programs (LEAP) grant program; (4) the Public School Opportunities Enhancement Program (PSOEP); (5) the Teaching Fellows for Maryland scholarship program; and (6) the Career and Technology Education (CTE) Innovation grant program. Beginning in fiscal 2020, the Governor must annually appropriate to the Prekindergarten Expansion Fund an amount that is at least equal to all revenues received in prior fiscal year. Finally, the scope of a study of the individualized education program (IEP) process in Maryland is expanded and the due date for the study is extended. The bill takes effect June 1, 2018. SB 1265 was signed by Governor Larry Hogan on April 10, 2018. Public Safety SB 707/HB 888 – Criminal Law – Firearm Crimes – Rapid Fire Trigger Activator This bill prohibits a person from (1) transporting or possessing a “rapid fire trigger activator” into the State. Violators are subject to an existing misdemeanor penalty of a maximum of three years imprisonment and/or a fine of $5,000. In addition, the bill prohibits a person from using a rapid fire trigger activator in the commission of a felony or a crime of violence. The bill allows a person to continue to possess a rapid fire trigger activator until October 1, 2019 if, among other things, the person applies for authorization from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). This bill takes effect October 1, 2018. My colleagues and I fought hard to defeat this legislation, as it has the potential to turn law abiding citizens into criminals through the simple possession of the rapid fire trigger activator; however, this legislation passed the Senate body with a 36-11 vote. HB 1029 – Criminal Law – Wearing, Carrying, or Transporting Loaded Handgun – Subsequent Offender This bill prohibits a person from violating the State’s prohibition on wearing, carrying, or transporting a handgun under § 4-203 of the Criminal Law Article with a handgun loaded with ammunition. A person who is eligible for subsequent offender status who violates this prohibition is subject to the penalties currently specified in statute. However, the bill (1) clarifies that the minimum sentence applicable to such a defendant is a mandatory minimum sentence; (2) prohibits a court from suspending any portion of the applicable mandatory minimum sentence; and (3) specifies that a person is not eligible for parole during this mandatory minimum sentence. A mandatory minimum sentence may not be imposed unless the State’s Attorney complies with specified notice requirements. HB 1302 – Public Safety – Extreme Risk Prevention Orders This bill establishes an “extreme risk prevention order” and sets forth a process by which a petitioner may seek a court order to prevent a respondent from possessing a firearm for the duration of the order under specified conditions. A petitioner includes specified health professionals, a law enforcement officer, or family. Based on my history working with commitment laws, as well as several new initiatives that strengthen the voluntary and involuntary commitment process, I find this bill unnecessary; it now creates a duplicative process without proper checks and balances. After attempting to defeat this bill, it passed the Senate body with a 31-13 vote. Health Care SB 704/HB 1652– Maryland Medical Assistance Program – Telemedicine – Assertive Community Treatment and Mobile Treatment Services This bill requires that, if the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) specifies by regulation the types of health care providers eligible to receive reimbursement for Medicaid telemedicine services, the types of providers must include psychiatrists providing assertive community treatment (ACT) or mobile treatment services (MTS) in a home or community based setting. The bill also specifies that ACT and MTS, for purposes of reimbursement and any fidelity standards established by MDH, are equivalent to the same health care service when provided through in person consultation. This legislation passed the Senate and the House of Delegates unanimously. SB 864/HB 1392 – Health – Emergency Evaluees and Involuntarily Admitted or Committed Individuals – Procedures  This bill requires a health care provider to disclose legal and medical records (including mental health records) without the authorization of an individual to a public defender who states in writing that the Office of the Public Defender (OPD) represents the individual in an involuntary admission or release proceeding under the Health-General Article or a commitment or release proceeding under the Criminal Procedure Article. The bill also requires facilities to notify OPD about the admission of an emergency evaluee or a change in admission status. This legislation passed the Senate and the House of Delegates unanimously. Other Topics of Interest SB 516/HB 807 – Transportation – Highway User Revenues – Distribution  This bill requires 100% of the funds in the Gasoline and Motor Vehicle Revenue Account (GMVRA) of the Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) to be retained by TTF beginning in fiscal 2020. Beginning in that same year, instead of directly sharing GMVRA revenue with local governments, the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) must provide capital transportation grants to local governments based on the amount of revenue allocated to GMVRA, as specified; however, the grants continue to be considered highway user revenues. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018. This legislation passed the Senate and the House of Delegates unanimously. SB 989/HB 1295 – One Maryland Economic Development Tax Credits – Simplification and Alteration This bill (1) modifies the One Maryland Economic Development Tax Credit Program; (2) renames and modifies the eligibility criteria for a “qualified distressed county” (QDC); and (3) allows qualified business entities under the One Maryland Program to claim increased expensing amounts under the State income tax. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018, and is applicable to certifications of qualified business entities issued after June 30, 2018. This legislation passed the Senate unanimously and the House of Delegates with little opposition. SB 134/HB 99 – Small Business Relief Tax Credit This Administration bill creates a credit against the State income tax for a small business that employs fewer than 25 employees and provides specified employee benefits to a qualified employee who earns $30,000 or less a year. The credit is the lesser of $1,000 for each qualified employee or the total amount of qualified employer benefits accrued by qualified employees. The Department of Commerce (Commerce) may issue tax certificates not exceeding $5 million in tax year 2018, $15 million in tax year 2019, $25 million in tax year 2020, $35 million in tax year 2021, and $40 million in tax year 2022 and in each tax year thereafter. The bill takes effect July 1, 2018, and applies to tax year 2018 and beyond. This legislation passed both the House of Delegates and the Senate unanimously; hardworking Marylanders deserve access to paid leave, but this should not be done at the expense of small, local businesses.