Read more about the article Deep Dive: What’s Crowding Out Maryland’s Budget?
County Budgets / Feature / Policy Deep Dive / State Budget and Fiscal Issues
Deep Dive: What’s Crowding Out Maryland’s Budget?

Maryland’s budget continues to grow, but lawmakers have less flexibility than they once did. A growing share of State spending now goes toward a relatively small number of long-term commitments, leaving fewer dollars available for transportation, housing, public safety, environmental programs, and other priorities. If it feels like every legislative session begins with another difficult budget debate, that’s because more of Maryland's budget now goes toward costs lawmakers have little ability to change. At the…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: What’s Crowding Out Maryland’s Budget?
July 2, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Beyond the ADA Digital Accessibility Deadline
Information Technology / Policy Deep Dive / Public Information and Ethics
Deep Dive: Beyond the ADA Digital Accessibility Deadline

In April 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a clarifying decision finalizing updated regulations under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The 2024 final rule formally adopts the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA as the minimum accessibility standard for public-facing digital content maintained by state and local governments. Background Since its enactment in 1990, the ADA has served as a fundamental civil rights law protecting individuals with disabilities from…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Beyond the ADA Digital Accessibility Deadline
June 10, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Why Maryland’s Gas Tax Changes Every Year
County News / Feature / Policy Deep Dive / Taxes and Revenues / Transportation and Public Works
Deep Dive: Why Maryland’s Gas Tax Changes Every Year

Maryland drivers will pay slightly more in State gas taxes beginning July 1, but the annual adjustment reflects a much more considerable challenge facing Maryland’s transportation system. The Office of the Maryland Comptroller announced this week that the State gasoline tax will increase from 46.0 cents per gallon to 46.6 cents per gallon. The change amounts to six-tenths of one cent per gallon, or about six cents on a 10-gallon fill-up. While the increase itself…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Why Maryland’s Gas Tax Changes Every Year
June 3, 2026
Read more about the article Beyond the Original Grand Bargain: Maryland’s Evolving Workers’ Comp System
Employee Benefits and Relations / Human Resources / Policy Deep Dive
Beyond the Original Grand Bargain: Maryland’s Evolving Workers’ Comp System

Workers’ compensation systems were designed around the idea that employees injured on the job would receive guaranteed benefits without having to prove employer fault, while employers would receive protection from unpredictable lawsuits and liability. This framework is often referred to as the “grand bargain” concept and has shaped workers’ compensation law across the country for more than a century. Workers’ compensation emerged as a compromise between labor and industry during the late nineteenth and early…

Comments Off on Beyond the Original Grand Bargain: Maryland’s Evolving Workers’ Comp System
May 27, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: High Court Reins in County Claims in Public Harm Cases
Feature / Government Liability and Courts / Policy Deep Dive
Deep Dive: High Court Reins in County Claims in Public Harm Cases

The Maryland courts have ruled that there is no broad "public nuisance" avenue available in Maryland law to target potential causes of public harm. While Maryland Supreme Court justices differed over local government's right to recover damages from opioid distributors under a common-law claim of public nuisance, the majority opinion effectively barred a county's claim of this type, with other justices expressing concern that the majority went too far and applied inconsistent logic in the…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: High Court Reins in County Claims in Public Harm Cases
May 20, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part III
Energy / Environment / Planning and Zoning / Policy Deep Dive
Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part III

In Parts I and II of our analysis of HB 1532, the Utility RELIEF Act of 2026, we examined new requirements related to county permitting of residential rooftop solar and study language concerning future state action on siting large-scale energy projects.  For Part III, the focus shifts from what the General Assembly passed to what may still need to be clarified. Over the past two years, lawmakers have enacted several significant energy measures, including the Next…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part III
May 13, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part II
Energy / Environment / Planning and Zoning / Policy Deep Dive
Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part II

In Part I of our analysis of HB 1532, the Utility RELIEF Act of 2026, we examined new requirements related to county permitting of residential rooftop solar, including more detailed software mandates, caps on permitting fees, and new enforcement authority for the Attorney General.  In Part II, we turn to study language directing the Power Plant Research Program (PPRP), along with other state agencies, to identify certain sites for large-scale energy generation and energy storage. While Part…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part II
May 6, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part I
Energy / Environment / Planning and Zoning / Policy Deep Dive
Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part I

With the 2026 legislative session now in the rearview mirror, several major bills deserve a closer look. Lawmakers faced a series of consequential and time-sensitive issues this year, forcing difficult decisions that will carry lasting implications for Maryland residents, counties, and the state’s broader policy landscape.  Energy policy, in particular, took center stage. With affordability serving as the watchword of the session, there was intense focus on what the General Assembly would do to address…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Breaking Down the Utility RELIEF Act Part I
April 29, 2026
Read more about the article Deep Dive: Disparity Grant Delivers Less Than It Promises
County Budgets / Policy Deep Dive / State Budget and Fiscal Issues
Deep Dive: Disparity Grant Delivers Less Than It Promises

This article is part of MACo’s Policy Deep Dive series, where expert policy analysts explore and explain the top county policy issues of the day. Maryland created the Disparity Grant to deal with a basic problem. Counties raise revenue very differently, even when they apply the same tax rates. Some generate far more at the same rate because of higher incomes, while others cannot keep up. The program still tries to address that gap. But…

Comments Off on Deep Dive: Disparity Grant Delivers Less Than It Promises
April 22, 2026
Read more about the article Roadmap for Maryland Recordation and Transfer Taxes Compliance
Courts / Government Liability and Courts / Policy Deep Dive / State Budget and Fiscal Issues / Taxes and Revenues
Roadmap for Maryland Recordation and Transfer Taxes Compliance

The Maryland State Bar Association has developed a revised guide to the multiple facets of Maryland's system of recordation and transfer taxes, as an aid to practitioners in real estate and land records. The 2025 revision updates documents last prepared in 2002, and covers both State and county-level tax systems, and the varying administration across the state. Maryland levies both State and county taxes on real estate transactions, both those that effect a sale (the…

Comments Off on Roadmap for Maryland Recordation and Transfer Taxes Compliance
December 4, 2025
Older Posts