Municipalities - Annexation - Limitations

HB 1525 prohibits Maryland municipalities from annexing land located in a different legislative district than the municipality itself. This directly affects cities and towns seeking to expand their boundaries, as they can no longer annex adjacent land if it falls in a separate legislative district. The bill amends Maryland’s local government code (Section 4-401(c)(2)) to explicitly ban such annexations, while maintaining existing rules requiring contiguous boundaries and preventing unincorporated areas. It does not change other annexation requirements, such as land being adjacent to the municipality’s current boundaries. The law takes effect immediately as an emergency measure.