Ways and Means Committee voting session: bills approved, held and withdrawn on March 11

The Ways and Means Committee convened March 11 for a voting session and reported a series of bills favorably, held one bill for further departmental work, and accepted two withdrawals. Major actions included measures on school technology policies, a curbside voting pilot, tax and administrative changes, and school safety requirements for athletic events.

Key outcomes (motions are committee reports or favorable votes as recorded in the transcript):

- House Bill 147 (as amended): Requires county boards of education to adopt and publish a policy limiting student use of personal electronic devices—including smartphones—during instructional time, with exceptions for students with disabilities and documented health issues; committee passed the bill favorably as amended.

- House Bill 317 (as amended): Establishes a curbside voting pilot program in three counties (one small, one medium, one large) for the 2026 and 2028 elections; the amendment requires State Board of Elections communications and signage to emphasize that curbside voting is primarily an accommodation for voters with disabilities, limited mobility and elderly voters; committee passed the bill favorably as amended.

- House Bill 496: Held by the committee pending work in HGO (departmental bill expected to capture issue and fiscal questions).

- House Bill 546: Makes the administration and appeals process for the digital advertising gross revenues tax the same as for other taxes collected by the comptroller; allows the comptroller or designee to correct an erroneous assessment; committee passed the bill favorably.

- House Bill 600 (as amended): Establishes uniform definitions related to military service across specified articles of the Maryland Code primarily by reference to the U.S. Code; extends current programs to include all uniformed service members as defined in federal law; committee passed the bill favorably as amended.

- House Bill 658 (6 58 in transcript) : Alters the Board of Juvenile Services Education Program membership rules, imposing consecutive two-term limits, staggering terms, and reducing required meetings from monthly to ten times per year; committee passed the bill favorably.

- House Bill 801: Creates the Maryland Financial Empowerment Center Network pilot program administered by the comptroller's office; provides free financial counseling and coaching services; takes effect Oct. 1, 2025, and terminates Sept. 30, 2028; committee passed the bill favorably.

- House Bill 879 (as amended): Establishes a task force to improve attendance and reduce chronic absenteeism; State Department of Education (MSDE) must provide staff and develop a toolkit; amendments added a student member and a school health professional; committee passed the bill favorably as amended.

- House Bill 935 (as amended): Requires public and nonpublic schools to include venue-specific emergency action-plan safety policies for high school football games naming acceptable health personnel or an ambulance; amendments expanded acceptable personnel, allowed volunteers, permitted a nearby ambulance (3 road miles) to count and allowed ambulance departure if called; committee passed the bill favorably as amended.

- House Bill 1085 (as amended): Exempts nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities to provide affordable housing from property taxes while retaining housing authority control and allowing the nonprofit to accept private investment via LIHTC; committee passed the bill favorably as amended. The committee recorded a roll-call for HB 1085: Vice Chair (Yes); Delegate Ebersole (Yes); Delegate Patterson (Yes); Delegate Buckle (No); Delegate Fair (Yes); Delegate Hornberger (Yes); Delegate Long (No); Delegate Young (excused); Delegate Miller (Yes); Delegate Roberson (Yes); Delegate Roberts (Yes); Delegate Whims (Yes); Delegate Vogel (Yes); Delegate Woo (excused); Delegate Hartman (No); Delegate Muir Q North (Yes); Delegate Griffith (No); Delegate Wells (Yes); Delegate Plockovich Carr (Yes); Delegate Feldmark (Yes). The transcript shows the bill passed favorably as amended.

- House Bill 1200: Authorizes local governments to provide a property tax credit to the surviving spouse or cohabitant of a judicial officer who dies in the line of duty; committee passed the bill favorably.

- House Bill 1450: Removes award and investment limits under the Maryland SBIR and Technology Transfer Incentive Program at the Maryland Technology Development Corporation while keeping per-business limits; committee passed the bill favorably.

- Withdrawals: House Bill 149 and House Bill 937 were withdrawn by consent of the committee.

Several bills had brief discussion or committee questions; the transcript indicates fiscal notes were referenced for multiple items but that in many cases local implementation details (for example, staffing numbers for curbside voting and school medical coverage) were not specified in committee discussion.