The House of Delegates Office Building will be open to the public during the 2022 legislative session, but committees will meet virtually.
There will not be any receptions or large gatherings in the House Office Building during the 2022 legislative session. In addition, committees will not schedule committee dinners during the 2022 session.
2022 HOUSE COMMITTEE GUIDELINES
House committees will work virtually for the 2022 legislative session. The following framework for House Standing Committees is based on current public health metrics and is subject to change.
HEARINGS
- Bill hearings will begin on January 13, 2022, for pre-filed bills. Pre-filed bills will be available online in late December, and the hearing schedule will be available during the first week of January 2022 on the Maryland General Assembly website. Witness sign-up for pre-filed bills scheduled for hearings on January 13 will be open via the MGA website at 10:00 am on Tuesday, January 11, 2022.
- Every on-time bill will receive a hearing. However, the standing committee chairs continue to have complete discretion over the length of the hearing.
- Hearing schedules will be available on the MGA website at some point during the week before scheduled bill hearings.
WITNESS SIGN-UP
- Witness sign-up will open online through the Maryland General Assembly website 48 hours before the bill hearing from 10:00 am until 3:00 pm. Witnesses can sign up on Thursdays for Monday hearings and Fridays for Tuesday hearings.
- The specific bill order will be posted on the Maryland General Assembly website the day before the hearing. For bills scheduled for a Monday hearing, the hearing order will post on Friday.
- The House standing committees will cap bill hearings at a maximum of 50 witnesses per bill.
- The witness sign-up software will not allow witnesses to sign up as a panel. However, the sponsor may communicate with the committee about other witnesses that the sponsor wants to testify with them, and the chairs will make every effort to accommodate those requests.
SUBCOMMITTEES: While subcommittees are not subject to the Maryland Open Meetings Act, subcommittee work will generally be livestreamed through the Maryland General Assembly website for the 2022 legislative session.
VOTING SESSIONS: All standing committee voting sessions will be livestreamed through the Maryland General Assembly website for the 2022 legislative session. The vote lists will be available on the Maryland General Assembly website at least two days before the voting session.
CO-SPONSORS: For the 2022 legislative session, co-sponsors will be listed on the blue backs.
BILL FILES: Electronic copies of the bill files will be available by request after the bill hearing by contacting the standing committee.
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- Bill files will be available through the MGA website when the bill is on the House floor for second reader. In addition, bill files will be available on the MGA website after the session for bills that do not pass out of the standing committee.
The Maryland Senate has yet to post its guidelines for the 2022 legislative session. Stay tuned to Conduit Street for more information.
