House rejects two amendments that would have paused or increased transparency for greenhouse-gas spending in housing bill

The Maryland House of Delegates debated amendments to House Bill 155, a housing and community-development measure that includes provisions tied to greenhouse-gas emissions reductions and related grant programs, but rejected both proposals on the House floor.

The first amendment, offered from the floor, sought a two-year pause on the portions of the Empower program that fund greenhouse-gas emission reduction targets. Proponents framed the change as short-term relief for ratepayers facing rising utility bills; opponents and committee leaders said the Empower and related programs generate systemwide savings and that the amendment would interrupt programs already operating.

Supporters said the pause would provide immediate monthly relief to Maryland households that they said are struggling with higher utility costs. "We're going to pause the portions of the Empower surcharge that relate to greenhouse-gas emission reduction targets," the amendment sponsor said on the floor, arguing the move would help people deciding between medicine and heat. Supporters also said local town halls and constituent contacts show growing hardship tied to rising bills.

Floor and committee leaders opposed the pause. The floor leader and the bill's committee members said staff and program operations are already in place and that Empower investments reduce peak load and, over time, lower costs across the grid. The committee argued the evidence in PSC reports and program evaluations shows net system savings from the program and cautioned that delaying the program would shift costs rather than save ratepayers money.

The House rejected the pause amendment on a recorded vote: the clerk announced "There being 100 votes in the negative, the amendment fails." The record shows the amendment did not pass.

A second floor amendment would have required an online public dashboard showing how grant and program dollars related to the bill were spent. Sponsors described the measure as a transparency fix so ratepayers could see where Empower and other program dollars are directed. The bill's opponents and committee leadership said program reporting is already available through the Public Service Commission and the Department of Housing and Community Development, and cautioned that the amendment would impose duplicative reporting and administrative burden.

That transparency amendment also failed on the floor; the clerk announced the result as "There being 99 votes in the negative, the amendment fails." After the votes on the amendments, the House ordered the bill printed for third reading.

Why it matters: HB 155 connects housing and community development actions with greenhouse-gas reduction goals and funding streams already embedded in utility-administered programs. Supporters of the amendments cast their proposals as near-term relief for ratepayers; opponents warned the changes would interrupt programs intended to reduce long-term system costs and emissions.

Vote at a glance (amendments to HB 155) - Amendment to pause Empower greenhouse-related elements for two years: failed (clerk: 100 negative votes announced). - Amendment to require an online dashboard showing program/grant expenditures: failed (clerk: 99 negative votes announced).

Detail and next steps: HB 155 remained on the calendar for further action after the House recorded the amendment votes. Committee staff and advocates on both sides said advocates can still pursue other bills or committee-level changes; the House also heard related debate on other energy and utility measures this week.

Speakers quoted in this article are identified in House proceedings and floor debate.