SB 276 Maryland Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Educational Equality for Service Members Act

SB 276 updates Maryland's education laws to include all uniformed services members (not just military personnel) in eligibility for educator certification. It revises definitions to clarify that "veteran" includes those discharged within one year of applying for certification, and expands "eligible spouse" to cover spouses of uniformed services members. The bill creates an expedited process for service members, veterans discharged within one year, and their spouses to obtain teaching licenses, requiring only a valid out-of-state license and meeting basic qualifications. This affects applicants for educator certificates across Maryland's public schools and aligns state law with broader federal definitions of uniformed services.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2025
Committee Review
Apr 2025
Senate Passage
Apr 2025
House of Delegates Passage
Apr 2025
Signed into Law
May 2025
Introduced Jan 10, 2025 Signed May 6, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

First - Educational Equality for Service Members Act Third - Educational Equality for Service Members Act · 5 edits
MODERATE
The bill text was updated with formatting corrections, committee approval status, and minor text adjustments to legal citations and definitions. The substantive policy content regarding educational equality for service members appears unchanged.
TECHNICAL

Added committee report status showing favorable approval with amendments and Senate adoption on February 16, 2025.

Corrected formatting of bill header information including bill number and committee reference.

Adjusted line numbers and section references in the Annotated Code of Maryland citations.

Added explanatory note about underlining indicating amendments to the bill.

Corrected minor text additions like 'LICENSE' and 'LICENSURE' in educator certification sections.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 18, 2025 · House of Delegates Mar 24, 2025

How they voted

430
Passed · 3 other
Total votes 46
Feb 18, 2025
D Democratic33
31 Yea 2
93% Yea
R Republican13
12 Yea 1
92% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
19
Key actions
10
Committee
6
May 6, 2025
Signed into law
Approved by the Governor - Chapter 255
executive
Apr 7, 2025
Upper · Passed
Returned Passed
upper
Apr 7, 2025
Lower · Passed
Third Reading Passed
lower
Apr 3, 2025
Lower · Passed
Favorable Adopted Second Reading Passed
lower
Apr 3, 2025
Lower · Passed
Favorable Report by Ways and Means
lower
Mar 24, 2025
House Of Delegates · Passed
House of Delegates Vote: pass (138-0-1)
house of delegates
Mar 7, 2025
Committee
Referred Ways and Means Appropriations
lower
Mar 6, 2025
Upper · Passed
Third Reading Passed
upper
Mar 4, 2025
Upper · Passed
Favorable with Amendments {
upper
Mar 3, 2025
Upper · Passed
Favorable with Amendments Report by Education, Energy, and the Environment
upper
Feb 18, 2025
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (43-0-3)
senate
Jan 10, 2025
Committee
First Reading Education, Energy, and the Environment
upper
6 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors