Professional Licensing Portability - Members of the Foreign Service and Spouses
SB 418 allows members of the U.S. Foreign Service and their spouses to practice their profession in Maryland using a license obtained in another state, under specific conditions. The bill amends Maryland law to create a new licensing pathway for these individuals, removing barriers that would otherwise require them to obtain a new Maryland license. This directly affects Foreign Service employees and their spouses who relocate to Maryland for assignments, enabling them to continue working without restarting licensing processes. The change applies across multiple licensed professions covered under Maryland’s occupational licensing statutes.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Apr 2026
Senate Passage
Apr 2026
House of Delegates Passage
Apr 2026
Signed into Law
May 2026
Introduced Jan 29, 2026
Signed May 12, 2026
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What changed between versions
First - Professional Licensing Portability - Members of the Foreign Service and Spouses
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Third - Professional Licensing Portability - Members of the Foreign Service and Spouses
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3 edits
MINOR
The bill text was reorganized and updated to reflect recent legislative actions, including a change in the committee report status and the bill's adoption history. The scope of the bill was significantly expanded to include additional Maryland state articles (Agriculture, Business Occupations and Professions, Business Regulation, Education, Environment, Financial Institutions, and Health) that are now being repealed and reenacted with or without amendments. This expansion ensures that foreign service members and their spouses can access professional licensing portability across a much broader range of state-regulated professions than previously covered.
Scope change
The bill's scope was expanded from a limited set of articles to include Agriculture, Business Occupations and Professions, Business Regulation, Education, Environment, Financial Institutions, and Health articles.
SCOPE
Added repeal and reenactment provisions for Agriculture, Business Occupations and Professions, Business Regulation, Education, Environment, Financial Institutions, and Health articles to extend licensing portability to these sectors.
TECHNICAL
Updated the bill header to reflect the new companion bill number (HB 1120) and added a record of the favorable committee report and floor adoption.
Reordered the sequence of articles being repealed and reenacted, moving Agriculture and Business Occupations to earlier positions in the bill text.
Floor votes · Senate Feb 27, 2026 · House of Delegates Apr 1, 2026
How they voted
46–0
Passed · 3 other
Total votes 49
Feb 27, 2026
D
Democratic36
94% Yea
R
Republican13
92% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
15
Key actions
10
Committee
6
Amendments
1
May 12, 2026
Signed into law
Approved by the Governor - Chapter 493
executive
Apr 13, 2026
Upper · Passed
Returned Passed
upper
Apr 13, 2026
Lower · Passed
Third Reading Passed
lower
Apr 8, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Adopted Second Reading Passed
lower
Apr 8, 2026
Lower · Passed
Favorable Report by Economic Matters
lower
Apr 1, 2026
House Of Delegates · Passed
House of Delegates Vote: pass (129-0-13)
house of delegates
Mar 13, 2026
Committee
Referred Economic Matters Health
lower
Mar 12, 2026
Upper · Passed
Third Reading Passed
upper
Mar 10, 2026
Introduced
Floor Amendment {
upper
Mar 10, 2026
Upper · Passed
Favorable with Amendments {
upper
Mar 9, 2026
Upper · Passed
Favorable with Amendments Report by Education, Energy, and the Environment
upper
Feb 27, 2026
Senate · Passed
Senate Vote: pass (46-0-3)
senate
Jan 29, 2026
Committee
First Reading Education, Energy, and the Environment and Finance
upper
1 primary · 0 co-sponsors
Sponsors
Role
Legislator
Party
State
District
P
Bryan Simonaire
RRepublican
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