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Committee votes: roundup of bills advanced, held and amended
Summary
A single-article roundup lists committee actions on multiple bills considered in the session: motions carried for most bills, one bill held for further explanation and several sponsor/technical amendments were adopted.
During the session the Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee considered a string of bills. Most were advanced with sponsor or technical amendments; one was held for additional information. Below are the items the committee formally acted on and the recorded outcomes.
Votes at a glance
- Senate Bill 308 (Election law; chief election judges): Approved as amended (unanimous). The committee accepted a sponsorship amendment adding Senators Kagan and Brooks and voted to report the bill favorably.
- Senate Bill 310 (Youth suicide prevention; school program revisions): Approved as amended (unanimous). Sponsor’s technical amendment was adopted and the bill carried.
- Senate Bill 318 (Higher educator loan assistance; veterinary practitioners/technicians): Approved as amended (unanimous). A technical corrective amendment and cosponsor request were accepted.
- Senate Bill 369 (Public libraries; automated external defibrillator program): Approved as amended (unanimous). Amendments clarified exclusions for correctional facility libraries and registration/reporting requirements.
- Senate Bill 456 (Dental services; part-time eligibility and online credentialing study): Approved as amended (unanimous). House amendment struck an MIA study provision after MIA indicated it would conduct the study independently.
- Senate Bill 534 (Election judges compensation; student service learning and pay): Approved as amended (unanimous). Amendment allowed students to choose service-learning hours or compensation.
- Senate Bill 633 (Campaign finance “Stop Scam Packs” act): Held. Committee members requested additional information and the measure was set aside for possible return the following day.
- Senate Bill 645 (Gubernatorial primary election date): Approved (10 yeas, 1 abstention). The bill moves the statewide gubernatorial primary in election years to the fourth Tuesday in June (one week earlier in some years) to avoid conflicts with holidays and school schedules.
- Senate Bill 1028 (Natural resources; vessel carbon monoxide warning labels): Approved as amended (unanimous). Sponsor amendment added a short title and limited application to vessels manufactured after 7/31/2007; committee suggested using 'motorized' to capture diesel vessels.
- Senate Bill 968 (Howard County; Patuxent River Wildland; motorized use for trail maintenance): Approved as amended (unanimous). DNR-suggested language authorizing mechanical or motorized maintenance on existing trails was adopted.
- Senate Bill 871 (Dept. of the Environment; community water/sewer cybersecurity planning): Approved as amended (unanimous). See separate article for details; sponsor amendments narrowed operational mandates and limited fiscal impact.
- Senate Bill 555 (Public Information Act denials tied to litigation): Approved as amended (6 yeas, 3 nays, 2 abstentions). Attorney General amendments narrowed the bill’s scope to records created for reasonably anticipated litigation.
- Senate Bill 491 (Veterans benefits; honorable discharge): Approved as amended (unanimous). Sponsor amendments conformed the bill to federal standards and allowed administrative upgrade review by the department.
- Senate Bill 309 (Department of Veterans and Military Families online registry): Approved as amended (unanimous). Amendments removed online registry requirements and added outreach and assistance tasks to the communications program.
Notes: Several bills carried unanimous support after sponsor, technical or AG amendments. Where roll-call tallies were recorded in the transcript, they are noted above. One bill (SB633) was held for further information and will be revisited.
