SB 777 requires Maryland’s Department of Labor to allocate funds from the Hospital Employees Retraining Fund to local workforce development boards when hospitals close, downsize, or merge. It mandates that these boards be included in state workforce programs and receive funding for the State’s quick response program to assist workers affected by job losses. The bill also requires local boards to provide grants to employers through the Apprenticeship Career Training in Our Neighborhoods Program. These changes directly affect local workforce boards, hospitals facing operational changes, and workers needing retraining or job placement support.
HB 347 adds hypertension to the list of occupational diseases presumed work-related for specific emergency responders in Maryland. It creates a legal presumption that firefighters, firefighting instructors, rescue squad members, advanced life support unit members, and State Fire Marshal staff with hypertension are entitled to workers' compensation benefits if they meet four conditions: diagnosed by a provider, prescribed hypertension medication for 90+ consecutive days, completed 2+ years of cumulative service in the state, and are currently employed in that role. This bill modifies Maryland’s workers’ compensation law (specifically Sections 9-502 and 9-503) to expand eligibility for these occupations without requiring separate proof that hypertension resulted from their job duties. It directly affects these emergency personnel seeking compensation for hypertension-related disability or death.
SB 439 prohibits Maryland fire and rescue public safety employers from taking negative employment actions (like firing or denying promotions) against employees who use medical cannabis, provided the employee has a valid medical cannabis certification under state law. It amends existing Maryland law to explicitly add this protection for public safety workers, aligning with current medical cannabis certification requirements. The bill does not change how medical cannabis is certified but ensures these employees cannot face discrimination solely for using cannabis legally under the state program. This applies to all fire and rescue employees who meet the state's medical cannabis eligibility criteria.
HB 678 clarifies membership requirements for the Correctional Officers' Retirement System, specifically affecting correctional officers and security staff at certain Maryland Department of Health facilities (including Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center). The bill amends retirement system rules to ensure that employees transferred between pension systems automatically join the Correctional Officers’ Retirement System as a condition of employment. Key provisions establish how unused sick leave credit is calculated for retirement benefits when employees move between systems, requiring proportional inclusion based on service in each system. This affects current and future employees in designated correctional roles at participating facilities, ensuring consistent retirement benefit calculations.
SB 449 extends workers' compensation benefits to Carroll County correctional deputies who develop heart disease or hypertension. It creates a legal presumption that these conditions are work-related (and thus compensable) if they result in partial disability or death, provided the condition is more severe than any pre-existing condition and the deputy had a medical exam before employment. The bill amends Maryland law to explicitly include "Carroll County Correctional Deputy" in the definition of "public safety employee" for these benefits. This change applies specifically to Carroll County deputies and requires meeting the severity and medical exam conditions to qualify.
SB 337 clarifies membership requirements and retirement benefits for correctional officers and specific staff in Maryland's Correctional Officers' Retirement System (CORS). It requires certain employees - such as correctional officers, security attendants at Clifton T. Perkins Hospital, and related positions - to join CORS as a condition of employment. The bill also clarifies how unused sick leave accrued in previous retirement systems (like the Employees' Pension System) is counted toward CORS benefits for employees who transferred systems without transferring service credit. This ensures accurate calculation of retirement benefits based on service history and unused sick leave, directly affecting eligible CORS members in designated roles.
HB 532 requires counties and municipalities in Maryland to calculate overtime pay for government-employed firefighters based on hours worked over 168 in a 28-day period (instead of the standard 40-hour workweek). It also mandates that these employers provide firefighters with specific payroll information at hiring, during pay rate changes, and with each paycheck - including pay rates, overtime rates, hours worked, and deductions. If employers fail to provide this information or pay due wages, firefighters or their representatives can file a grievance, triggering automatic damages that increase by 30% per pay period until resolved, capped at three times the missing amount. The bill directly affects all firefighters employed by Maryland local governments and aims to standardize overtime calculations and improve payroll transparency.
SB 74 would remove a rule that sometimes required promoted police officers and deputy state fire marshals to accept a lower pay step than their previous position if others in the new rank had equal or more seniority. Currently, if a promoted employee’s prior step was higher than peers with equal or greater experience in the new rank, they were automatically placed in a lower step. The bill repeals this restriction, ensuring promoted employees retain their previous step’s pay rate upon advancement. This change applies to all future promotions starting July 1, 2026, directly affecting Maryland police and fire marshal personnel.
HB 234 repeals a provision that sometimes required police employees or deputy State fire marshals to accept a lower pay step upon promotion if other employees in the same rank had equal or more service time but a higher pay step. The bill directly affects current and future police employees and deputy State fire marshals in Maryland. It removes the restriction that forced promoted officers to move to a lower pay step in their new rank, instead allowing them to retain the pay step they held in their previous rank. This change ensures promotions align with the employee's prior pay step without automatic reduction, streamlining pay progression. The law takes effect July 1, 2026.
HB 478 modifies Maryland's income tax by expanding the existing $250 deduction for unreimbursed classroom supply expenses to include prekindergarten teachers. Previously, only K-12 classroom teachers qualified; this bill explicitly adds prekindergarten teachers employed full-time in state programs. The deduction remains limited to $250 per year for supplies used by students or for teaching preparation, excluding expenses already deducted federally. This change affects prekindergarten teachers statewide who purchase classroom supplies without reimbursement, effective for taxable years starting after December 31, 2025.
