The Arc Maryland's Weekly Legislative Update 
 For the Week of March 5 - 10, 2018

 Please check out our bill tracker and
the hearing schedule below!
*For a key of the Committee abbreviations, please click here or see  the end of this Newsletter*

Here's a Recap of Last Week's Notable Hearings

The DDA Budget and BRFA (HB 161/ SB 187) hearings were held last week in thr House Appropriations and Health and Social Services Subcommittee and the Senate Budget and Tax and Health and Human Services Subcommittee.   
The Arc Maryland also joined with DD Coalition partners in 1:1 meetings with members of key Committees over the past few weeks to provide fact sheets and information on the necessity of appropriate funding.

OUR ADVOCACY CANNOT STOP.  Your Representatives in the General Assembly NEED to hear from you. 

It was very clear during the hearings that our members of the House and Senate NEED to hear more from us.  When our coalition members and other advocates gave testimony during the budget hearings, they were repeatedly asked if they also submitted written testimony or if they could provide a copy of their testimony.  This indicates that committee members need stories they can share with their colleagues.  They need our numbers, our data, our stories and our tenacity and they need them NOW.  Decisions are already being made on the budget and with the Budget/BRFA hearings over, we are down to the wire to ensure the 3.5% funding is restored to the DDA budget.  

We are missing approximately 15 million in General Funds from the DDA budget (actual: 14.65 million General Funds according to the analysis)

Please click  HERE to download the "Keep the DD Promise" briefing and fact sheet.

HB 664 /  SB 543: 
Labor and Employment- Payment of the Minimum Wage Required 
("Fight for 15")

HB 664/SB 543 proposes to increase the state minimum wage incrementally to $15 per hour by July 1, 2023, and then by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) every year beginning July 1, 2024.  The bill includes a provision to increase DD funding for Community Providers each year to address Direct Care Provider wages with related expenses and COLA.  Funding would be increased by 7% in FY20, followed by 5.5% in each of the years  from  FY21 to FY24.  This provision is designed to keep the wage factor in the DD rate at a certain percentage above minimum wage as the state minimum wage increases. 

Position: The Arc Maryland believes that Direct Support Professionals perform a critical role in our system of supports in Maryland and that one way we address the Direct Care crisis is through increasing the DD funded wage factor in the DDA rates.  This bill includes a mandate for increases in DD funding.  

Please click  HERE to download the "Fight for 15" briefing sheet


HB 966/ SB 1103:  Education - Voluntary Ethical Special Education Advocate Certificate Program

Requiring the State Department of Education to establish the Voluntary Ethical Special Education Advocate Certificate Program on or before July 1, 2019, for administration of a voluntary certificate program for ethical special education advocates; specifying qualifications and application procedures for a certificate; requiring the Department to issue a certificate to a certain applicant; authorizing an applicant to petition for judicial review of a decision of the Department that relates to issuing or renewing a certificate;

Status:  HB 966 Post Hearing, Awaiting Report from W&M.  There is a SB 1103 Hearing next week, 3/14 at 1 pm in EHEA

Positions: Although The Arc Maryland appreciates amendments made to this bill based on feedback we submitted last session, the bill is still concerning as the purpose of the bill is not clear and the language is vague. "Advocate" is not defined and the components and rationale of the selection of the training program that would be used for certification makes the value of certification questionable.  The Arc is invested in ensuring that parents may continue to invite a friend or other advocate of their choosing to an IEP meeting, and that advocate will not be required to have any special training to attend.  The Arc has submitted written testimony with our Coalition Partners in the Education Advocacy Coalition.

HB 1507:  
Compulsory School Attendance - Truancy Violations - Reporting of Neglect

Requiring a school employee to report any person to the local department of social services for neglect of a child if the person has legal custody or care and control of a child who is between certain ages and fails to see that the child attends school or receives certain instruction; repealing certain provisions of law providing a criminal penalty for certain persons.

Status: Post Hearing, Awaiting Report from JUD

Position: The Arc Maryland opposes this bill and has submitted written testimony in collaboration with the Education Advocacy Coalition. This bill creates a punitive response to a situation that should be approached carefully and on an individual basis. We should be taking a person-centered approach to addressing why children are absent from school-based instruction. We seek a consideration in language that states that appropriate supports and services be provided to a student and his or her family to support school attendance if the student is absent due to the prevalence of a disability.

HB 1489:  Education - Due Process Hearings for Children With Disabilities - Burden of Proof

Requiring certain public agencies to bear the burden of proof in due process hearings that are held to resolve a dispute relating to the provision of a free appropriate public education; providing a certain exception for a parent or guardian seeking tuition reimbursement for a unilateral placement of the student by the parent or guardian; and establishing that a certain provision of law is not intended to change certain record-keeping requirements or what constitutes a free appropriate public education under federal or State law.

Status: Post Hearing, Awaiting Report from W&M

Position: The Arc Maryland supports this bill with amendment  in collaboration with the Education Advocacy Coalition and submitted written testimony. Currently if a family thinks the school system did not provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) as required by law, they can file for a due process hearing. If the family files for a hearing, the family bears the burden to prove that the school system did not provide a free, appropriate public education. Switching the burden of proof to the school makes sense in unilateral placements. School systems have more resources, information and expertise and thus, are in a better position to prove if they have provided a free, appropriate public education. 

HB 1601: State Department of Education - Trauma-Informed Schools Initiative, Program, and Fund

Establishing the Trauma-Informed Schools Initiative in the State Department of Education; requiring the State Department of Education, in consultation with the Maryland Department of Health and the Department of Human Services, to develop certain guidelines and offer certain training; requiring the State Department of Education, in consultation with the Maryland Department of Health and the Department of Human Services, to establish the Trauma-Informed Schools Expansion Program. 

Status: Post Hearing, Awaiting Report from W&M

Position: The Arc Maryland supports this bill and provided oral testimony on behalf of our Coalition Partners Education Advocacy Coalition. This bill is a proactive approach to dealing with trauma-informed care in schools.  One of every four children attending school has experienced a traumatic event that can affect learning and/or behavior. The benefits of implementing trauma- informed care in Maryland schools cannot be overstated. Many of the students who have been restrained or placed in seclusion are students who have sustained trauma.  The use of restraint and seclusion induces additional trauma.

Here are this week's top bills to watch -

Children's Issues

HB 1379: Baltimore County Public Schools - Student Misconduct - Penalty for Parent and Guardian

Prohibiting a certain student from violating the Baltimore County Board of Education's bullying, harassment, and intimidation policy by performing certain actions; prohibiting a certain student from violating a certain Code of Student Conduct by fighting; establishing a civil fine not to exceed $1,000 for a certain person who has legal custody or care and control of a certain student; authorizing a court to suspend a certain fine under certain circumstances;

Status: Hearing 3/9 at 1 pm in W&M

Position: The Arc Maryland opposes this bill in collaboration with the Education Advocacy Coalition and will be submitting written testimony.  This bill creates a punitive response for parents for an action of a dependent child.  We believe there should be special considerations for students with disabilities; a student with a disability may not understand the nature of social relationships with peers and adults. For example, the student may stand too close to other children and follow them around school in an effort to make friends with them; actions that may be perceived as harrassment under the student code. The behavior of children with disabilities can be easily misread by peers and by adults who do not understand them.  
HB 1388 /SB 597: Community Colleges - Supplemental Services and Supports for Students With Disabilities Grant Program

Requiring the Maryland Higher Education Commission to consult with the Maryland Association of Community Colleges when establishing a certain review process and adopting certain guidelines or regulations for a grant program for supplemental services and supports for students with disabilities in community colleges; and requiring, beginning in fiscal year 2020, that the Governor include in the annual budget bill a General Fund appropriation of at least $2,500,000 to the Commission to be used to award grants under the program.

Status: HB 1388 Hearing 3/8 at 1 pm in W&M, SB 597 Post Hearing, Awaiting Report from EHEA

Position:   The Arc Maryland supports this bill in collaboration with the Education Advocacy Coalition and will be submitting written testimony.  The grant program proposed by this bill would assist community colleges in meeting legal requirements by better enabling them to provide a range of supplemental services and supports to students with disabilities for greater academic success. Students with disabilities who are included in academic courses and campus life on a college campus are more likely to be employed, earn more, and may require less support throughout their lifetime.

HB 1533: Students With a Disability - Brain Injury Screening - Evaluation for Individualized Education Program

Requiring the State Department of Education to adopt a standard, by regulation, for the provision of a brain injury screening to be given to a child with a disability during an initial evaluation for an individualized education program, using a screening developed with the advice of the State Traumatic Brain Injury Board.

Status: Hearing 3/9 at 1 pm in W&M

Position:  The Arc Maryland is submitting a letter of information in collaboration with the Education Advocacy Coalition. Students with traumatic brain injury are under-reported and often misclassified as students with emotional or other disabilities, thereby failing to receive the specialized services they need.  Although The Arc Maryland would generally support screening for brain injury, this bill is worded in a way that makes it inconsistent with the way the special education evaluation process operates. This inconsistency and problematic component of the bill could be addressed by requiring brain injury screening for students who are referred for special education.  
Adults (TY), Providers, and Global Issues

This is the week of the "Minimum Wage Bills" - All are being heard on 3/8/18

HB 664 / SB 543:  Labor and Employment- Payment of the Minimum Wage Required ("Fight for 15")
 
HB 664/SB 543 proposes to increase the state minimum wage incrementally to $15 per hour by July 1, 2023, and then by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) every year beginning July 1, 2024.  The bill includes a provision to increase DD funding for Community Providers each year to address Direct Care Provider wages with related expenses and COLA.  Funding would be increased by 7% in FY20, followed by 5.5% in each of the years from FY21 to FY24.  This provision is designed to keep the wage factor in the DD rate at a certain percentage above minimum wage as the state minimum wage increases. 

Status: Hearing on 3/8 at 1 p.m. in Senate FIN

Position: The Arc Maryland believes that Direct Support Professionals perform a critical role in our system of supports in Maryland and that one way we address the Direct Care crisis is through increasing the DD funded wage factor in the DDA rates.  This bill includes a mandate for increases in DD funding.

SB 368: Labor and Employment- State Minimum Wage Increase
  
SB 368 increases the State minimum wage rate based on the annual growth in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area, and requires the Commissioner of Labor and Industry to annually determine and announce the growth in the Consumer Price Index and the new State minimum wage rate.

Status: Hearing on 3/8 at 1 p.m. in Senate FIN

Position: Support with amendment- This bill does NOT include a provision for DD funding and that must be added to ensure the DD wage factor is sufficient to ensure that DSP positions do not become minimum wage jobs.

SB 1019:  Labor and Employment- State Minimum Wage Increase
  
SB 1019 increases the State minimum wage rate based on the annual growth in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area, and requires the Commissioner of Labor and Industry to annually determine and announce the growth in the Consumer Price Index and the new State minimum wage rate.

Status: Hearing on 3/8 at 1 p.m. in Senate FIN

Position: Support with amendment- This bill does NOT include a provision for DD funding and that must be added to ensure the DD wage factor is sufficient to ensure that DSP positions do not become minimum wage jobs.

It is also Bond Bill Week with many Bond Requests being heard this Saturday !

HB 259/ SB76 :  Creation of a State Debt - Anne Arundel County - The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region

The Arc Central Chesapeake Region seeks $500,000 in bond financing for renovations on their new Severn Building.  To see the letter of support from The Arc Maryland, click HERE

Status:  Hearing on SATURDAY at 11 a.m. in the Senate B&T and 2 p.m. in the House APP.

Position:  Support

SB 269:  Creation of a State Debt- Prince George's County- The Arc of Prince George's County.

The Arc Prince George's County seeks $168,000 in bond financing for renovations to the Administration Building to include ADA accommodations and the Bridges Medical Day Program kitchen remodel.  To see the letter of support from The Arc Maryland, click   HERE.

Status:  Hearing on SATURDAY in the Senate B&T at 3 p.m.

Position:  Support

We Need Your Help
 
Please contact your members of the committees who heard testimony on the Budget and BRFA this week.  Let them know how important it is that the 3.5% DDA Funding is restored to the budget and what this would mean for you as a self-advocate, families member, or provider of services, or other advocate.  Here is a link to the House Appropriations Committee membership list.  Here is a link to the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee membership list.  Emails and calls are great.  Visits are wonderful.  Letters take longer to get into the hands of the legislator due to mail screening procedures so they are less preferred unless you are delivering a letter personally to your representative.
 
Also, The Arc Maryland is continuing to collect stories on the impact that various bills and actions could have on individuals with I/DD and their families. Please join our advocacy efforts by clicking on the links below to share your stories!
Federal Legislative Activity

Your actions in early February to ask the Senate to fund Money Follows the Person (#fundMFP) made a big impact.  Now it is time to once again take action to make the EMPOWER Care Act law! 

(Click the bold links to learn more about the Act and Money Follows the Person)

The Money Follows the Person (MFP) program is a Medicaid program that has helped more than 75 thousand people with disabilities and seniors move from nursing homes and other institutions to the community.  The MFP program has expired, and we need your advocacy to get the House and Senate to pass the EMPOWER Care Act to continue it before the programs are broken down at the state level. All programs will be out of money THIS YEAR. 


JOIN THE ARC IN OUR ADVOCACY NOW: 

Join in our national call-in day (Wednesday, March 7) 
Look for our Facebook event on The Arc Maryland Page this week

Participate in our social media day  (Thursday, March 8) to #FundMFP.  

Everyone deserves the opportunity to live in the community!


billtracker
Bill Tracker
Click here for The Arc Maryland Bill Tracker. (Click on the bill number in the chart to see the full bill)
This Week's Notable Hearings
schedule
March 6th
  • Senate: Judicial Proceedings (JPR) - Miller Senate Building in Room 2 East at 1 pm
    • SB 1013, First Responders - Mandatory Autism Training
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission to develop an autism awareness training program for certain first responders; and requiring certain first responders to complete a certain autism awareness training program.
  • House: Health and Government Operations (HGO) - House Office Building in Room 240 at 1 pm
    • HB 1280, Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Rare and Expensive Case Management Program - Waiver Amendment
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Department of Health to apply to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for an amendment to the Rare and Expensive Case Management Program under a certain waiver; and requiring the application to authorize enrollment in the Program for certain individuals who are between the ages of 21 and 64 who have a qualifying Rare and Expensive Case Management diagnosis.
  • House: Health and Government Operations (HGO) - House Office Building in Room 240 at 1 pm
    • HB 1064, Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Home- and Community-Based Waiver Services - Prohibition on Denial
    • Description: Prohibiting the Maryland Department of Health from denying an individual access to a home- and community-based services waiver due to a lack of funding for waiver services if the individual is discharged from a certain health care facility directly to the individual's home and is eligible for certain funding within 45 days after the discharge.
  • Senate: Judicial Proceedings (JPR) - Miller Senate Building in Room 2 East at 1 pm
    • SB 1013, First Responders - Mandatory Autism Training
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission to develop an autism awareness training program for certain first responders; and requiring certain first responders to complete a certain autism awareness training program.
  • House: Economic Matters (ECM) - House Office Building in Room 230 at 1 pm
    • HB 1417, Healthy Working Families Act Delay of Effective Date
    • Description: Delaying the effective date of the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act.
  • House: Economic Matters (ECM) - House Office Building in Room 230 at 1 pm
    • HB 1421, Labor and Employment - Healthy Working Families Act - Seasonal Worker Revisions
    • Description: Repealing the period within which an employer is not required to allow an employee to use earned sick and safe leave; altering the circumstances under which an employer is authorized to require an employee who uses earned sick and safe leave to provide certain verification.
  • House: Health and Government Operations (HGO) - House Office Building in Room 240 at 1 pm
    • HB 851, Medicaid and the Maryland Children's Health Program - Home and Community-Based Providers - Funding
    • Description: Requiring that the Governor's proposed budget for fiscal year 2020, and for each fiscal year thereafter, include a 3.5% rate increase for certain home and community-based providers over the funding provided in the legislative appropriation for the immediately preceding fiscal year.
  • House: Health and Government Operations (HGO) - House Office Building in Room 240 at 1 pm
    • HB 1113, Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Services for Children with Prader-Willi Syndrome
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Department of Health to apply to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for a certain waiver in order to receive federal matching funds for certain services to certain children with Prader-Willi syndrome.
March 7th
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 660, Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Rare and Expensive Case Management Program - Waiver Amendment
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Department of Health to apply to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for an amendment to the Rare and Expensive Case Management Program under a certain waiver; and requiring the application to authorize enrollment in the Program for individuals who are between the ages of 21 and 64 who have a qualifying Rare and Expensive Case Management diagnosis.
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 937, Maryland Medical Assistance Program - Home- and Community-Based Waiver Services - Prohibition on Denial
    • Description: Prohibiting the Maryland Department of Health from denying an individual access to a home- and community-based services waiver due to a lack of funding for waiver services if the individual is discharged from a certain health care facility directly to the individual's home and is eligible for certain funding within 45 days after the discharge.
  • House: Health and Government Operations (HGO) - House Office Building in Room 240 at 1 pm
    • HB 1618, Community-Based Services Waivers and State Disabilities Plan - Alterations (Maryland Disabilities Act)
    • Description: Requiring that a certain home- and community-based services waiver include a requirement that at least half the waiver participants live in community-based housing immediately before receiving waiver services; requiring that a certain waiver required by the Maryland Department of Health implement a certain waiting list; requiring the Maryland Department of Health to provide individuals on the waiting list with certain information.
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 939, Community-Based Services Waivers and State Disabilities Plan - Alterations (Maryland Disabilities Act)
    • Description: Requiring that a certain home- and community-based services waiver include a requirement that at least half the waiver participants live in community-based housing immediately before receiving waiver services; requiring that a certain waiver required by the Maryland Department of Health implement a certain waiting list; requiring the Maryland Department of Health to provide individuals on the waiting list with certain information.
  • Senate: Budget and Taxation (B&T) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 West at 1 pm
    • SB 763, Use of Public Funds - Playground and Athletic Field Surfaces - Preferences and Prohibitions
    • Description: Establishing a preference for the use of state-of-the-art natural surface materials in any projects to construct playgrounds or athletic fields using public funds; prohibiting the use of State funds to finance any portion of a project to build a new, or replace an existing, playground or athletic field with a synthetic surface; and providing for the prospective application of the Act.
  • Senate: Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs (EHEA) - Miller Senate Building in Room 2 West
    • SB 1041, Education - Teacher Certification - Montessori Schools
    • Description: Making an individual eligible for a certificate to teach students in a Montessori school if the individual meets certain requirements; authorizing the State Board of Education to require an individual to successfully pass an examination to be certified under the Act; providing that, subject to a certain exception, an individual that satisfies the requirements under the Act may not be required to meet any additional requirements to be certified to teach students at a Montessori school.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1415, Education - Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education
    • Description: Requiring the State Department of Education, in collaboration with certain entities, to establish a certain outreach program; establishing the Maryland Early Literacy Initiative in the Department; establishing the Learning in Extended Academic Programs (LEAP) grant program; altering certain eligibility requirements for the Teaching Fellows for Maryland scholarship program; establishing a Career and Technology Education Innovation Grant.
March 8th
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 1019, Labor and Employment - State Minimum Wage Rate - Increase
    • Description: Specifying the State minimum wage rate that is in effect for certain time periods for certain employers, including midsized and small employers; increasing, except under certain circumstances, the State minimum wage rate in effect for certain periods of time based on certain calculations; requiring the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, beginning at a certain time, to annually determine and announce the growth in the Consumer Price Index, if any, and the new State minimum wage rate under a certain provision of the Act.
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 543, Labor and Employment - Payment of the Minimum Wage Required (Fight for Fifteen)
    • Description: Specifying the State minimum wage rate that is in effect for certain time periods; increasing, except under certain circumstances, the State minimum wage rate based on the annual growth in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area; specifying the tip credit amount that is in effect for certain time periods; prohibiting an employer, beginning July 1, 2026, from including the tip credit amount as part of the wage of certain employees.
  • Senate: Finance (FIN) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 East at 1 pm
    • SB 368, Labor and Employment - State Minimum Wage Rate Increase
    • Description: Specifying the State minimum wage rate in effect for certain time periods based on employer size; increasing the State minimum wage rate based on the annual growth in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the Washington-Baltimore metropolitan area, or a certain successor index; requiring the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, beginning at a certain time, to annually determine and announce the growth in the Consumer Price Index and the new State minimum wage rate.
  • Senate: Judicial Proceedings (JPR) - Miller Senate Building in Room 2 East at 1 pm
    • SB 1066, Juvenile Law - Lead Testing and Behavioral Health Assessment
    • Description: Requiring, instead of authorizing, the juvenile court to order a child to undergo blood lead level testing if the child's parent or guardian consents; requiring, instead of authorizing, the juvenile court to direct the Department of Juvenile Services or another qualified agency to make a certain study concerning the child; requiring that, as part of the study, the Department conduct a comprehensive behavioral health assessment of the child.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 976, Community Colleges - Vocational Certificates, Apprenticeship Training Programs, and Associate Degrees - Tuition Assistance
    • Description: Establishing the Community College Vocational Certificate, Apprenticeship Training Program, and Associate's Degree Tuition Assistance Program; specifying that participation in the Program is voluntary; requiring an individual, in order to participate in the Program, to enroll at a community college within 6 months of obtaining a high school diploma or a certain equivalent; requiring participants to complete at least 15 hours of community service; providing certain reimbursement to community colleges for foregone tuition.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • SB 1041, Education - Teacher Certification - Montessori Schools
    • Description: Making an individual eligible for a certificate to teach students in a Montessori school if the individual meets certain requirements; authorizing the State Board of Education to require an individual to successfully pass an examination to be certified under the Act; providing that, subject to a certain exception, an individual that satisfies the requirements under the Act may not be required to meet any additional requirements to be certified to teach students at a Montessori school.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1388, Community Colleges - Supplemental Services and Supports for Students with Disabilities Grant Program
    • Description: Requiring the Maryland Higher Education Commission to consult with the Maryland Association of Community Colleges when establishing a certain review process and adopting certain guidelines or regulations for a grant program for supplemental services and supports for students with disabilities in community colleges; and requiring, beginning in fiscal year 2020, that the Governor include in the annual budget bill a General Fund appropriation of at least $2,500,000 to the Commission to be used to award grants under the program.
  • House: Appropriations (APP) - House Office Building in Room 121 at 1 pm
    • HB 1457, Higher Education - Students with a Chronic Health Condition - Reporting Requirements
    • Description: Requiring each institution of higher education that operates in the State to submit a report on undergraduate and graduate students with a chronic health condition to the Maryland Higher Education Commission, the Governor, and the General Assembly on or before July 1, 2019, and each year thereafter.
  • House: Appropriations (APP) - House Office Building in Room 121 at 1 pm
    • HB 1697, Education - Commercial Gaming Revenues - Constitutional Amendments 
    • Description: Proposing an amendment to the Maryland Constitution to limit the uses of certain revenues to educational opportunities and programs for the children of the State in public schools, the advancement of educators, and the construction of school facilities; requiring the Governor to include in the budget submission certain amounts in certain fiscal years as supplemental funding for certain purposes; requiring that certain funding be in addition to State funding provided for certain grades in public schools in fiscal year 2020.
March 9th 
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1382, Public Schools - Student Misconduct - Parent or Guardian Liability
    • Description: Prohibiting a certain student from violating a county board of education's bullying, harassment, and intimidation policy by performing certain actions; prohibiting a certain student from violating a county board's student code of conduct by fighting; establishing a civil fine not to exceed $1,000 for a certain person who has legal custody or care and control of a certain student; authorizing a court to suspend a certain fine under certain circumstances.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1446, Public Schools - School emergency Response Systems - Study (Safer Schools Act)
    • Description: Requiring the State Department of Education, in collaboration with certain other entities, to develop a certain educational video to provide awareness to high school students on the harms and risks of experimenting with narcotic drugs; requiring each public high school annually to show the video to each student in the school and make a certain certification; authorizing each nonpublic high school annually to show the video to each student in the school.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1530, Education - Student Health Screenings - Brain Injury
    • Description: Requiring county boards of education and county health departments to provide brain injury screenings to certain students; requiring county health departments to fund brain injury screenings for certain students; requiring that brain injury screenings be given to students in certain years; requiring a county board or a county health department to report to the Maryland Department of Health the results of certain brain injury screenings and the number of students receiving certain services.
  • House: Ways and Means (W&M) - House Office Building in Room 130 at 1 pm
    • HB 1533, Students with a Disability - Brain Injury Screening - Evaluation for Individualized Education Program
    • Description: Requiring the State Department of Education to adopt a standard, by regulation, for the provision of a brain injury screening to be given to a child with a disability during an initial evaluation for an individualized education program, using a screening developed with the advice of the State Traumatic Brain Injury Board.
  • Senate: Budget and Taxation (B&T) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 West at 1 pm
    • SB 1122, Education - Commercial Gaming Revenues - Constitutional Amendments 
    • Description: Proposing an amendment to the Maryland Constitution to limit the uses of certain revenues to educational opportunities and programs for the children of the State in public schools, the advancement of educators, and the construction of school facilities; requiring the Governor to include in the budget submission certain amounts in certain fiscal years as supplemental funding for certain purposes; requiring that certain funding be in addition to State funding provided for certain grades in public schools in fiscal year 2020.
March 10th
  • House: Appropriations (APP) - House Office Building in Room 121 at 2 pm
    • HB 259, Creation of a State Debt - Anne Arundel County - The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region
    • Description: Authorizing the creation of a State Debt not to exceed $500,000, the proceeds to be used as a grant to the Board of Directors of The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region Donald Avenue building, located in Anne Arundel County; providing for disbursement of the loan proceeds, subject to a requirement that the grantee provide a matching fund.
  • Senate: Budget and Taxation (B&T) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 West at 11 am
    • SB 76, Creation of a State Debt - Anne Arundel County - The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region
    • Description: Authorizing the creation of a State Debt not to exceed $500,000, the proceeds to be used as a grant to the Board of Directors of The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of The Arc of the Central Chesapeake Region Donald Avenue building, located in Anne Arundel County; providing for disbursement of the loan proceeds, subject to a requirement that the grantee provide a matching fund.
  • Senate: Budget and Taxation (B&T) - Miller Senate Building in Room 3 West at 3 pm
    • SB 269, Creation of a State Debt - Prince George's County - The Arc Prince George's County
    • Description: Authorizing the creation of a State Debt not to exceed $168,000, the proceeds to be used as a grant to the Board of Directors of The Arc of Prince George's County, Inc. for the acquisition, planning, design, construction, repair, renovation, reconstruction, site improvement, and capital equipping of The Arc of Prince George's County building, located in Prince George's County; providing for disbursement of the loan proceeds, subject to a requirement that the grantee provide and expend a matching fund.
key
Please note: the following abbreviations identify the legislative committees in the Maryland General Assembly.

House of Delegates
  • Economic Matters Committee - EMC
  • Environment and Transportation Committee - E&T
  • Health and Government Operations Committee - HGO
  • Judicial Committee - JUD
  • Ways and Means Committee - W&M
Senate 
  • Budget & Taxation Committee - B&T
  • Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee - EHEA
  • Finance Committee - FIN
  • Judicial Proceedings Committee - JPR
The Arc Maryland Public Policy Team 

Ande Kolp, Executive Director

Tonia Ferguson, Esq., Director of Public Policy & Special Initiatives
Lori Scott, RN, MS, Public Policy Fellow
Grace Williams, Public Policy Fellow