Governor Larry Hogan yesterday signed emergency legislation granting him the authority to transfer up to $50 million from the State’s rainy day fund to pay for costs associated with Maryland’s response to the novel coronavirus. The bill, SB 1079, was passed unanimously last week by the Senate and the House of Delegates.

“I want to sincerely thank Speaker Jones and President Ferguson and all the members of the Maryland General Assembly for working with us to expedite this legislation and unanimously pass it,” said Governor Hogan. “This is a great example of how seriously the State of Maryland has been taking this crisis, and it shows that government at the federal, state, and local levels is working together to respond to this threat in a cooperative and coordinated manner.”

State law authorizes the Governor to transfer funds from the Revenue Stabilization Account (rainy day fund) to the general fund “as necessary to support the operation of State government on a temporary basis,” so long as the General Assembly approves the transfer, and it does not cause the account balance to drop below 5.0 percent of the estimated general fund revenues for that fiscal year.

Maryland is currently operating under a state of emergency, and the Maryland Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) has elevated its state response activation level. At the governor’s direction, state agencies have ramped up response and preparedness efforts across all levels of government.

Read the list of ongoing state actions here.

Information and updates about COVID-19 in Maryland are available at health.maryland.gov/coronavirus.

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