SDAT tells Ways and Means Committee HB54 procurement could run to FY2026; agency outlines outreach and credit-processing changes

The Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation told the Ways and Means Committee on Jan. 14 that the procurement to implement House Bill 54 — a state-authorized payment-plan program for property taxes — could extend into fiscal year 2026 and will require a federal- and state-security review, a 45-day public RFP period and possible Board of Public Works approval if the contract exceeds $200,000.

The briefing, led by Dan Phillips, director of the Department of Assessments and Taxation, covered three bills the department must implement (HB54, HB236 and HB16), recent changes in assessment notices and customer service, and operational steps SDAT has taken to clear application backlogs for homestead credits.

House Bill 54, procurement timeline and implementation

Bob Yeager, newly appointed deputy director of SDAT, described HB54 as a vendor-operated program that would “allow property owners to enter into a payment plan to pay their property taxes,” with the vendor paid through fees charged to enrollees. He told the committee that SDAT and the Department of Information Technology (DoIT) have concluded no existing state system meets HB54 requirements and that SDAT must issue an RFP. Yeager said DoIT’s drafters are finalizing technical language; the RFP must be posted for 45 days, may generate many vendor questions and could be revised and reissued before award. He recommended a conservative timeline that could put full award and vendor onboarding in fiscal year 2026.

Yeager also told members that the Board of Public Works may need to approve the award if the procurement amount exceeds $200,000 and that the vendor’s proposed operational scope will determine how much SDAT itself must staff versus what the…