HB 10 Maryland House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Legal Advertisement or Legal Notice - Publication in Newspaper or Newspaper in General Circulation - Digital Newspapers

HB 10 updates Maryland law to include qualified digital publications as valid platforms for publishing required legal advertisements and notices (like court filings or government announcements). It establishes specific standards for digital publications to qualify, requiring them to produce original local news content (at least one article weekly), employ staff dedicated to local reporting (30+ hours/week), and meet other criteria like public interest focus. This directly affects counties and municipalities that must publish such notices, ensuring digital outlets meet comparable standards to traditional print newspapers. The bill takes effect October 1, 2026, with special provisions for Prince George’s and Dorchester Counties.

Issues: ✓ Technology

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jul 2025

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House of Delegates Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jul 23, 2025 Last action Mar 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

First - Legal Advertisement or Legal Notice - Publication in Newspaper or Newspaper in General Circulation - Digital Newspapers → Third - Legal Advertisement or Legal Notice - Publication in Newspaper or Newspaper in General Circulation - Digital Newspapers · 5 edits

MODERATE

This bill update clarifies what qualifies as a 'newspaper' for legal notices, expanding the definition to include digital-only publications that cover local news. It also adds stricter requirements for digital publications to ensure they employ reporters who gather original news rather than just aggregating content. The changes aim to ensure legal notices appear in credible, news-focused publications while adapting to modern digital media.

Scope change

The bill now applies to both print and digital publications, with specific criteria for digital-only outlets to qualify as valid venues for legal advertisements and notices.

DEFINITION

Expanded the definition of 'newspaper' to include digital-only publications that cover local or state news in more than three counties.

REQUIREMENT

Added new requirements for digital publications to employ at least one full-time reporter who gathers original local or state news for distribution in the community.

Added requirement that digital publications maintain an archive of all published legal advertisements and notices available to the public.

Added requirement that digital publications be accessible in the specific county or municipality where the legal notice must be published.

ELIGIBILITY

Modified eligibility criteria for tax-exempt organizations to require that their mission includes covering local or state news and that less than 50% of receipts come from political or non-501(c)(3) organizations.

Floor votes · House of Delegates Feb 28, 2026

How they voted

98–36

Passed · 8 other

Total votes 142

Feb 28, 2026

D Democratic103

96 Yea 7

93% Yea

R Republican39

2 Yea 36 Nay 1

92% Nay

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 13, 2026

Committee

Referred Judicial Proceedings

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Third Reading Passed

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

Motion Special Order until 3/11 (Delegate Grammer) Adopted

lower

Mar 10, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with Amendments {

lower

Mar 9, 2026

Lower · Passed

Favorable with Amendments Report by Judiciary

lower

Feb 28, 2026

House Of Delegates · Passed

House of Delegates Vote: pass (98-36-8)

house of delegates

Jan 14, 2026

Committee

First Reading Judiciary

lower

Jul 23, 2025

Introduced

Pre-filed

lower

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors