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News From Annapolis
Delegate Trent Kittleman - District 9A
Week 11
April 4 - 9, 2022
Contents
  • The Pre-Sine Die" Stampede
  • Bills that have already passed both chambers
  • The bill that "disappeared"
  • Spending Bills & Tax Relief
  • Good news for local roads
  • Interrogating Children
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The Pre- Sine Die Stampede
The Legislature just entered our last week of the 2022 Session. Things are moving quickly in the House as we rush through hundreds and hundreds of bills, with frequent double sessions.

There are two reasons for this full-court press at the end this year:
  1. the House (unlike the Senate) wasted the first three weeks, holding only one or two normal floor sessions as we paid obeisance to the leftover fears of COVID, and
  2. the Majority must pass their most cherished bills by the end of Monday, April 4th in order to prevent a gubernatorial veto from killing the legislation.
The relevant procedural rules are as follows:
When does a bill actually become LAW?

Vetoes, During Session: The governor must sign or veto legislation within 6 days of transmittal (excluding Sunday), or it becomes law without his/her signature.

Vetoes, Post Session: Legislation transmitted to the governor after the governor's six-day veto window goes beyond adjournment, or up to 20 days after session adjournment, must be acted upon by the governor within 30 days of transmittal from the legislature, or it becomes law without being signed.

Exceptions:

Bills that have already passed
The bill that 'Disappeared' ???
HB 746, the "Trans Health Equity Act of 2022" would extend Medicaid coverage in Maryland to individuals receiving gender-affirming surgery and treatment. According to the Fiscal Note accompanying the bill, Maryland Medicaid currently covers gender-affirming treatments for individuals that:
  1. are age 18 and older;
  2. have the capacity to make fully informed decisions and consent for treatment;
  3. have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria; and
  4. undergo a minimum of 12 months of continuous hormonal therapy when recommended by a mental health professional.

Supporters of the bill cite the Fiscal Note list of procedures not covered by Medicaid that would become covered under the bill.
  1. "hair alteration treatments;
  2. voice modification surgery and therapy/lessons;
  3. alterations to the abdomen, trunk, and buttocks;
  4. additional surgeries to the face and neck; and
  5. fertility preservation services (which are not covered for any Medicaid participants for any reason)."
There was no clarification as to whether this bill would extend coverage to individuals under the age of 18.

The bill easily passed the Senate, but apparently came upon some troubled waters in the House Health & Government Affairs Committee. Upon watching the 53-minute voting session from beginning to end, I learned that the committee voted 14-8 in favor of sending the bill to the House floor. The debate was thoughtful and respectful . . .
. . . therefore, what happens next is puzzling.

The bill was scheduled to be brought up on the floor on March 29, then rescheduled for March 30. But nothing happened.

What is even more puzzling is the disappearance of the bill's "history" that is recorded on the General Assembly website. As reported by Maryland Matters:

"The General Assembly’s website no longer lists the committee votes of March 25 as having happened. There’s also no electronic record of the witnesses who testified in favor of the legislation during the House committee’s hearing of [HB 746] Kaiser’s bill on March 2.

"Asked Friday why the committee vote on the health equity bills is no longer on the legislature’s website, Del. Shane E. Pendergrass (D-Howard), the Health and Government Operations chair, replied, “I have no idea what you’re talking about. That’s not something I have any knowledge of.”
Spending Bills & Tax Relief bills
Spending
Let's start with the knowledge that Maryland had a BUDGET SURPLUS of over $7.6 MILLION this year. So, what did we spend it on and what did we return to the taxpayers.

Here are a few of the ways we spent it.

  • The Governor Increased the State Budget by 10.5% (to $61 Billion), including three supplemental budgets.

  • The Legislature set aside funds to pay for attorneys to represent tenants being sued for eviction by landlords.

  • HB 1349 - Allocated $14,385,000 to provide a bonus of either $500 or $1,000 to each non certificated education support professional" after which a Workgroup will study the wages of non certificated education professionals.

  • HB 598 - Created a nonrefundable credit against the State income tax for up to 50% of the federal Work Opportunity Tax Credit claimed by an employer who hires in-state, individuals who are considered to face significant barriers to employment.
  • ($ in millions) FY2023 FY2024 FY2025 FY2026 FY2027
  • Net Effect ($26.3) ($27.3) ($28.3) ($29.1) ($29.7) 

  • SB 528 - Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022
  • ($ in millions) FY2023 FY2024. FY2025 FY2026 FY2027
  • GF Expenditure $1.8 $24.3 $24.3 $24.3 $14.2

  • Put $2.4 Billion back into the Rainy Day Fund

  • HB 642 - Income Tax - Theatrical Production Tax Credit creates a refundable credit against the State income tax for 25% of qualified theatrical production costs incurred in the State.
Retiree Tax Relief
HB 1468 - “Income Tax Retirement Income Subtraction Modification and Senior Credit."

Yes, this is the bill we've all been waiting for, the Bill the Governor has touted as "the largest tax cut in state history" . . . but don't count your savings just yet. Here is how much "relief" you will actually be getting from the State:

Criteria to be eligible:
  • You must be over 65 to be eligible
  • An individual's gross income must not exceed $100,000
  • A married couple filing jointly, both of whom meet the criteria, must not have a gross income over $150,000.
Benefits:
  • An eligible individual will get a credit of $1,000 against his state taxes (but will still owe county income taxes)
  • An eligible married couple will get a credit of $1,750 against their state taxes (but will still owe county income taxes)
Other information:
  • If the credit exceeds your tax in one year, you may NOT carry the balance forward.
  • If your income exceeds the relevant threshhold, you get nothing
And don't forget these valuable tax exemptions!

HB 316 has given us an exemption from the sales tax on diapers!

This will save families with several infants at lease $26 per year!
SB 571 - The Toothbrush Bill
This wonderful "tax relief" bill will save us the .06% tax on toothbrushes, toothpaste, tooth powders, mouthwash, dental floss, and other similar oral hygiene products.
And then there's HB 488

This bill exempts "Medical Devices and Products from the sales tax. Included in the exemption are: (1) medical or clinical thermometers; (2) pulse oximeters; (3) blood pressure monitors; (4) specified diabetic care products; and (5) and specific N95-type face masks.

HB 172 - Income Tax - Union Dues that allows union members to subtract up to $300 of their union dues from their taxable income.
Good News for Local Roads
Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. and Democratic leaders in the General Assembly have agreed to partially restore local road and bridge funding. For 40 years, the localities were allocated 30% of the 'highway user revenues.' The local percentage was drastically cut in 2009, during the Great Recession, to just 10 percent.

"Under the compromise, the localities’ share of the fund will gradually increase, reaching an 80-20 split in fiscal year 2027. In a press release, the Hogan administration said the agreement will result in a $663 million increase in local road and bridge repair funding."

"'These grants will provide our counties and municipalities with vital resources to address critical needs and advance more priority projects in every jurisdiction,' Hogan (R) said in a statement. I want to thank our partners in the General Assembly for working with us to get this done.”
"Hogan, Legislative Leaders Tap Surplus to Boost Local Road Maintenance" 
Maryland Matters, by Bruce DePuyt, April 2, 2022
Interrogating Children
HB 269 - Juvenile Interrogation Protection Act

This is a bill whose purpose I support wholeheartedly. Children often make false confessions because their brains are not fully developed until around 25 and children are motivated to falsely confess in exchange for short-term rewards. A study of exonerations found that 42% of exonerated juveniles had falsely confessed to crimes they did not commit in comparison to 13% of adults

Nonetheless, this bill does not strike an appropriate balance between public safety and enhanced process for juveniles. It prohibits a law enforcement officer from questioning a child until the child has consulted with an attorney. The officer must also make a fair effort to contact and notify the parents of the situation.

The Maryland police and sheriffs' associations testified against the bill primarily because before a custodial interrogation of a juvenile can begin, consultation with an attorney is required and cannot be waived, regardless of the individual circumstances.
Rather than hogtie police officers who won't know what he or she can say to any juvenile upon apprehension, there are three specific ways to virtually eliminate the possibility of a child being unfairly questioned, several of which were mentioned by witnesses.
  1. Video all conversations between a police officer and the child. Body cameras make this so easy that it should be a simple mandate.
  2. Prohibit police from using deception (lying) to any child under the age of 16. Deceptive statements can be used in the interrogation of adults, but are not appropriate when dealing with young children.
  3. Draft a youth version of the Miranda warning. Although most kids can probably recite the Miranda warning from their TV viewing, knowing what it means is different -- especially when a police officer says it to them. Maryland can't replace the Miranda warning dictated by the Supreme Court, but it can supplement the warning with one specifically designed to be easily understood by children. It might sound something like this:
  • "Here's what's happening. I need to ask you about what appears to be a crime. You do not have to talk to me at all, because if you admit to committing a crime, you can't take it back. You can tell me that you want to wait for us to get you a lawyer who can help you decide what to do. The lawyer will also contact your parents or guardian and let them know where you are and what has happened. Do you want to talk with me, now, or would you like to wait? If you change your mind at any time, you can if you will sign a paper that says you wanted to talk to me and didn't want to wait for a lawyer. Do you understand all this?"
Actual wording could be tested on a group of young people of different ages to determine what construct is most easily understood by the largest number of children at all ages.

All three of these conditions are objective and don't require police officers to make difficult judgment calls about what they can or cannot say. The courts can view the videos and make a judgment call about the fairness of the interrogation, but that would be a learning experience for the officer rather than a violation of the law.
Kittleman Legislative Scholarship



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