With only one week left in the session, two priority bills have completely passed both houses, including:
SB 705 - Health Insurance - Qualified Resident Enrollment Program (Access to Care Act) - which is ready to go to the Governor for signature. Its companion bill, HB 728, has passed the House with identical language and is awaiting its final vote in the Senate; and
HB 583 - Center for Firearm Violence Prevention and Intervention – Establishment - will need the House to accept minor Senate amendments for it to fully pass. Its companion bill, SB 475, is awaiting its final vote in the House.
A third bills, SB 620 - Resources and Education for All Prisons (REAP) Act, has almost passed both houses. It only needs its final vote in the House to be ready to go to the Governor. It is identical to HB 92, which passed the House and is awaiting a committee vote in the Senate.
Other bills making their way through the opposite chamber are:
Working for Accessible Renewable Maryland Thermal Heat (WARMTH) Act - HB 397 passed House and has now been voted out of the Senate committee with amendments and is awaiting Second Reading in the Senate. Its companion bill, SB 570, also came out of the Senate committee with amendments.
Active Shooter Safety Drills or Trainings – HB 416 passed the House (138-0) and was voted out of committee with amendments and is awaiting Second Reading in the Senate, along with its companion bill, SB 432.
Energy Efficiency and Conservation Plans [EmPOWER Reform] - HB 864 passed the House and has now been voted out of the Senate committee with amendments and is awaiting Second Reading in the Senate. If it passes the Senate, it will need to have the House concur with the amendments in order for it to pass. HB 864 has no companion bill.
Legally Protected Health Care - Gender-Affirming Treatment – SB 119 passed Senate and has now been voted out of one House committee without amendment and is awaiting a vote by a second House committee. If it passes the House without further amendment, it will go to the Governor for signature. Its companion bill, HB 691, has not yet come out of the House committee (but only one must pass both chambers in order to become law).
More bills are still in committee waiting for a vote, and time is running out.
