HB 1297 Maryland House of Delegates · 2026 Regular Session

Income Tax - Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit - Alterations

HB 1297 modifies Maryland's student loan debt relief tax credit by changing how unused credit amounts are recaptured. It requires taxpayers to repay only the unused portion of the credit (not the full amount) if they don't use it for student loan repayment within 3 years. The bill also authorizes the Maryland Higher Education Commission to grant extensions of this 3-year period for taxpayers unable to repay due to specific federal delays, such as litigation over the SAVE repayment plan, Department of Education understaffing, or waiting for public service loan forgiveness. This directly affects Maryland residents with qualifying student loan debt who claim the tax credit.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Apr 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Apr 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 12, 2026 Last action Apr 13, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

First - Income Tax - Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit - Alterations Third - Income Tax - Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit - Alterations · 2 edits
MINOR
The bill has progressed from its initial introduction to adoption and a favorable committee report, with a new second reading date set. The substantive text of the student loan debt relief tax credit remains unchanged, preserving the eligibility criteria, funding limits, and recapture rules established in the original version.
Scope change
The bill's scope and applicability remain unchanged; only the procedural status and metadata of the legislation have been updated.
TIMELINE

Added a favorable committee report status and a second reading date of March 27, 2026, indicating the bill has passed its first legislative hurdle.

TECHNICAL

Updated the bill header to reflect 'CHAPTER ______' instead of 'A BILL ENTITLED', a standard formatting change when a bill is adopted and assigned a chapter number.

Floor votes · House of Delegates Mar 30, 2026

How they voted

1288
Passed · 6 other
Total votes 142
Mar 30, 2026
D Democratic103
100 Yea 3
97% Yea
R Republican39
28 Yea 8 Nay 3
71% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
7
Key actions
4
Committee
4
Apr 13, 2026
Committee
Referred Rules
upper
Apr 13, 2026
Lower · Passed
Third Reading Passed
lower
Apr 11, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Adopted Second Reading Passed
lower
Apr 11, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Report by Ways and Means
lower
Mar 30, 2026
House Of Delegates · Passed
House of Delegates Vote: pass (128-8-6)
house of delegates
Feb 12, 2026
Committee
First Reading Ways and Means
lower
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Photo of Julie Palakovich Carr
Julie Palakovich Carr
DDemocratic
MD
17