Fraud Prevention and Worker Protections - Prohibitions, Penalties, and Enforcement

HB 1096 strengthens fraud prevention and worker protections in Maryland by prohibiting false records that underpay unemployment insurance or overpay benefits, directly affecting employers and contractors. It establishes a new Worker Protection Unit within the Attorney General’s office to enforce wage laws, prohibits waivers of workplace fraud protections, and requires civil penalties for violations to fund unemployment insurance. The bill also updates enforcement mechanisms for wage laws, alters debarment rules for state contracts, and ensures prevailing wage violations cannot be resolved through private agreements.