Public Safety - Immigration Enforcement Agreements - Prohibition
Maryland's SB 245 prohibits state, local governments, county sheriffs, and their agencies from entering new agreements with federal authorities to enforce civil immigration law. It defines such agreements as contracts under federal laws like 8 U.S.C. § 1103 or § 1357. Existing agreements must be terminated by July 1, 2026, or immediately upon the bill's effective date of June 1, 2026. The law directly affects all Maryland local law enforcement entities and state agencies that previously collaborated with federal immigration enforcement.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Feb 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Feb 2026
Signed into Law
Feb 2026
Introduced Jan 15, 2026
Signed Feb 17, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
First - Public Safety - Immigration Enforcement Agreements - Prohibition
→
Third - Public Safety - Immigration Enforcement Agreements - Prohibition
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4 edits
MODERATE
The bill was amended to add an emergency clause and clarify the effective date, while removing the original effective date provision. The definition of 'Immigration Enforcement Agreement' was reformatted but remains substantively the same. A new section was added requiring immediate termination of existing agreements upon the bill's enactment, replacing the previous July 1, 2026 deadline.
Scope change
The bill's scope remains focused on prohibiting state and local entities from entering into immigration enforcement agreements, with the key change being the accelerated timeline for terminating existing agreements.
TIMELINE
Added an emergency clause stating the bill takes effect immediately upon enactment, replacing the original June 1, 2026 effective date.
Changed the deadline for terminating existing immigration enforcement agreements from July 1, 2026 to immediately upon the bill's effective date.
TECHNICAL
Added committee report status and Senate action notes indicating the bill was adopted with floor amendments.
Reformatted the definition section with different indentation and line breaks, but the substantive legal meaning remains unchanged.
Floor votes · Senate Feb 3, 2026 · House of Delegates Feb 12, 2026
How they voted
34–12
Passed · 3 other
Total votes 49
Feb 3, 2026
D
Democratic36
94% Yea
R
Republican13
92% Nay
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
14
Key actions
8
Committee
6
Amendments
1
Feb 17, 2026
Signed into law
Approved by the Governor - Chapter 1
executive
Feb 13, 2026
Upper · Passed
Returned Passed
upper
Feb 12, 2026
Lower · Passed
Third Reading Passed
lower
Feb 10, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Adopted
lower
Feb 9, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Report by Judiciary
lower
Feb 4, 2026
Committee
Referred Judiciary
lower
Feb 3, 2026
Upper · Passed
Third Reading Passed
upper
Jan 29, 2026
Introduced
Floor Amendment {
upper
Jan 29, 2026
Upper · Passed
Favorable Adopted
upper
Jan 28, 2026
Upper · Passed
Favorable Report by Judicial Proceedings
upper
Jan 15, 2026
Committee
First Reading Judicial Proceedings
upper
3 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Bill Ferguson
DDemocratic
P
Karen Young
DDemocratic
P
Will Smith
DDemocratic
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