Dear fellow Marylander,
The 449th meeting of the General Assembly concluded on April 13th, and carried one of the heaviest workloads in House of Delegates history with 2,067 bills introduced in our chamber and an additional 1,406 in the Senate. Many of the bills passed into law are consequential for affordability, local control, and public safety. National issues had an atypically heavy influence on the policy discussions considered in Annapolis this year.
As a senior member and Deputy Minority Whip of Ways & Means, I reviewed a variety of issues impacting education, gaming, and tax law in Committee. Some of the policy wins we were able to deliver included HB-478, a tax credit for classroom supplies purchased by teachers, HB-842 which provides a property tax credit for surviving spouses of military service members, and HB-289 to intercept individuals owing child support payments or other similar debts at gambling facilities. I was the primary sponsor on HB-1330 to make the Homeowners’ Property Tax Credit application year-round, and HB-1554 to compile pertinent data for the purpose of reducing and reforming the sales and use tax on electricity for agricultural purposes. HB-297 benefited the many vocational workers who call Cecil County and Maryland home by rewarding first-hand real-world experience along with traditional education.
I voted no on SB-255 Voting Rights Act of 2026 – Counties and Municipal Corporations. While I agree that local communities should determine their own representation, this one-size fits all approach was the wrong way to address the issue rather than on a county-by-county basis. Despite this setback, the nationally-driven effort to redraw and gerrymander Maryland’s congressional maps was defeated.
Cecil is blessed with the natural beauty of the Susquehanna River to our West, The Chesapeake Bay to our South, and the best County laws for sportsmen and women. While the bill ultimately does not go far enough with migratory gamebird Sunday hunting, HB-1063 significantly expands sportsman rights in Maryland. This is a major step forward and a win for conservationists to preserve ad-hoc funding for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). SB-334 effectively bans Glock handguns under the guise of being a “machine gun convertible pistol.” While I voted no, the bill does not apply to law enforcement, military members, or federal officials in official capacities. This is a ban on converting such pistols from semi-automatic to full-automatic devices, which is already illegal. The bill is likely unconstitutional and will likely be challenged in court. I am, however, glad to report that HB-1067, which would have banned lead ammunition, was defeated.
Legislation passed affecting law enforcement and public safety was mostly done so on party lines. HB-444 bars local law enforcement agencies from entering into formal agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Local law enforcement officers are not involved in apprehending or investigating immigration violations. Six counties in Maryland use an unofficial model where they cooperate with ICE to enforce actual warrants for undocumented immigrants held in their local jails, and those programs can continue legally. Three jurisdictions, including Cecil County, use ‘jail models’ with enhanced formal cooperation to identify convicted or suspected criminals in their custody who are here illegally, alert ICE to their status, and help facilitate transferring them to federal custody before they are released. SB-791 “Community Trust Act”significantly reduced the ability of law enforcement to cooperate with ICE, going much farther than the ban on 287(g). The bill not only risks the safety of our communities, but it also threatens joint federal, state, and local task forces just like the one involved in the major drug bust on the Eastern Shore.
I introduced HB-508, which removes frivolous unfounded complaints against law enforcement officers from their file after a three-year statute of limitation. I have been able to garner bipartisan support for this legislation, and plan to revisit the bill again next year. This protects good police officers from internal retaliation or bad-faith complaints.
While HB-1532 Utility RELIEF Act was marketed as a grand solution to Marylanders’ surging electricity bills, this legislation falls short of its promises. While the bill did include some policy changes that Republicans have advocated for such as a reduction in the EmPower Maryland fees, the legislation continued to double down on the majority’s green energy obsession that created these massive electricity bills. For all the savings that were promised in this bill, in the end, it was estimated to generate savings of approximately $150 per year, or about $12.50 per month. With monthly energy bills soaring by hundreds of dollars per month, I ultimately voted no on the final amended version of the bill.
I introduced measures to lower vehicle registration fees to what they were prior to last year’s tax hike, eliminate the Vehicle Emissions Inspection Program (VEIP), and enact a gas tax holiday in response to the recent price spikes due to the situation in Iran. I also helped lead the effort in Ways & Means to repeal the 3% technology services tax, one of the most day-to-day disruptive taxes. This tax is discouraging investment, harming Maryland’s competitiveness, and failing to meet revenue expectations. Although the majority did not move forward with any of these proposals, I plan to revisit VEIP privatization and fee/tax cuts again in future legislative sessions.
Capital Budget Highlights:
$200,000 Northbay Outdoor Education
$100,000 Chesapeake Health Veterans House of Hope
$250,000 Fair Hill Nature Center
$100,000 Elkton Flood Mitigation
$100,000 Water Witch Fire Company
$100,000 Girl Scouts Camp Conowingo
$500,000 Elkton Water Filtration
It is a privilege to continue serving as your Delegate. More information on all the activities of the Maryland General Assembly can be found at https://mgaleg.maryland.gov. Our District 35 Team consists of Senator Jason Gallion, Delegate Mike Griffith, Delegate Teresa Reilly, and myself. Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our offices in the future should you need assistance.
Sincerely,
Delegate Kevin B. Hornberger
District 35B, Cecil County