Latest news with #HB442
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Moore signs local bills aimed at safeguarding child victims, increasing housing stock
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) on Tuesday signed a tranche of bills with local sponsors, including two filed on behalf of Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater. Sen. William Folden (R-4) and Del. Karen Simpson (D-3) cross-filed SB333 and HB442 to allow statements made by a child to a professional forensic interviewer to be read in court in exception to the rule against hearsay. The measure was part of Fitzwater's legislative package for the 2025 Maryland General Assembly session, which began on Jan. 8 and ended on April 7. Another bill, HB492, was first requested by Fitzwater (D) at a forum with the state delegation in December. That bill, sponsored by Simpson and co-sponsored by several other Frederick County delegation members, will authorize Frederick County government's human resources team to use fingerprint-supported background checks for certain prospective county employees or volunteers. Currently, the county government relies on the Frederick County Sheriff's Office to conduct criminal history checks for all prospective county employees and volunteers. However, that process takes six to eight weeks on average, leading to delays in hiring and onboarding, Fitzwater said. County spokesperson Vivian Laxton wrote in an email on Tuesday that the county's human resources division is 'looking forward to reassessing the level of screening that is appropriate for the County's various safety- and security-sensitive positions, which includes County employees who work with vulnerable populations.' Laxton said the change will not have to be approved by the Frederick County Council. Also signed into law on Tuesday was a bill sponsored by Del. Kris Fair (D-3) on behalf of the Housing Authority of the City of Frederick. HB1085 will exempt certain real property owned by nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities from state and local property taxes. Nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities would instead pay a fee in lieu of taxes. During a news conference recapping the 2025 legislative session on Monday, Fair said HB1085 will 'help expand the reach and ability for housing authorities across the state to build the necessary housing needed today.' Fair said the fee-in-lieu option for nonprofit entities created by public housing authorities was already available in three Maryland jurisdictions through a pilot program. 'We've seen huge results with it,' Fair said of the change. 'We're looking forward to continuing to expand those results especially into Frederick, which was not part of that pilot.' Other bills with Frederick County sponsors signed into law by Moore on Tuesday include: * SB84/HB22 * , sponsored by Sen. Paul Corderman and Rep. William Valentine (both R-2): requires the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services to conduct an annual study on individuals' residence prior to incarceration and on release from a state correctional facility * SB502/HB1200 * , sponsored by Corderman and Valentine: authorizes the governing body of a county or municipality to provide a property tax credit for judicial officers in addition to law enforcement officers and rescue workers HB241 * , sponsored by Simpson: allows a spouse to disclose a confidential communication between spouses occurring during their marriage in a criminal action in which one spouse is charged with a crime against the other spouse * HB300 * , sponsored by Del. Ken Kerr (D-3): increases the rate at which nonprofit organizations receiving state-funded grants or contracts may be reimbursed for indirect costs from 10% to 15% * HB293 * , sponsored by Del. Jesse Pippy (R-4) and co-sponsored by Simpson: allows the testimony of a child abuse victim be taken outside a courtroom and shown in the courtroom by closed circuit television. Moore signed some Frederick County bills into law on April 8. Three more rounds of bill signings are planned on May 6, 13 and 20. He will have until May 27 to sign or veto bills passed by the state legislature during this year's session. A bill also can become law if the governor takes no action.
Yahoo
05-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Several bills from Frederick County pass Maryland General Assembly as session winds down
With the last day of the 2025 Maryland General Assembly session approaching on Monday, several bills with Frederick County sponsors have already passed both chambers and to the governor. Two of the bills that made it through the state legislature are based on priority legislation Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater submitted to the state delegation last year. One, HB442, would allow statements made by a child to a professional forensic interviewer to be read in court. Currently, the rule against hearsay prevents forensic interviewers from testifying about statements children made to them. The bill's primary sponsor is Del. Karen Simpson, a Democrat from District 3. Fitzwater, a Democrat, had also asked the delegation to propose a statewide version of Family Connects Frederick County. The program provides a free home visit with a nurse to families with a newborn baby delivered at Frederick Health Hospital. But the amended legislation that advanced to Democratic Gov. Wes Moore — HB334 in the state House of Delegates and SB156 in the state Senate — stops short of expanding the program to other jurisdictions. Instead, the cross-filed bills will establish a work group on universal nurse home visiting services in the state. The work group would be tasked with compiling data on existing services, identifying gaps in service and making recommendations to the state legislature by the end of 2025. Del. Ken Kerr sponsored the House version of the bill. Sen. Karen Lewis Young sponsored the Senate version. Both Kerr and Lewis Young are Democrats representing District 3. Kerr is also the lead sponsor of a bill establishing a work group on cyber security at hospitals and other health care entities. That bill has also advanced to the governor. Kerr previously told The Frederick News-Post that he hoped HB333 could prevent data breaches like the one that occurred this year at FHH, in which patients' names, Social Security numbers, birthdays and addresses were compromised. Also of note in the public health sphere is HB39, which would repeal a Maryland law that criminalizes knowingly transferring or attempting to transfer HIV. Advocates of the bill have said that the intentional transfer of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases is already covered by the state's reckless endangerment statute, which has a higher penalty. They have also argued that the existing law unnecessarily stigmatizes people with HIV and discourages people from knowing their HIV status. The bill's lead sponsor is Del. Kris Fair (D-3), who is also the director of The Frederick Center, a nonprofit organization that caters to the LGBTQ+ community. In a press release on Thursday, Fair called the bill's passage 'a win for public health, for racial justice, and for correcting historical wrongs.' Three bills sponsored by the entire Frederick County delegation have also been approved by the General Assembly. They are: * HB512 * — to increase the number of ounces of alcohol Frederick County businesses with salon liquor permits such as barbershops and hair salons can serve to customers HB866 * — to allow the manager or other official of a theater in Frederick County to hold the establishment's liquor license HB1026 * — to update the rules for beer and wine tastings in Frederick County * Two other pieces of legislation requested by Fitzwater were still pending the General Assembly as of press time on Friday. They are: SB175 * — to ban the sale, transfer or distribution of nonconductive jacketed corrugated stainless steel tubing, a common fuel gas piping material linked to the 2021 line-of-duty death of Frederick County Battalion Chief Josh Laird. * As of press time on Friday, the bill had been amended and passed by the House. The Senate must still approve the amended version. The legislative session is scheduled to conclude at the end of the night on Monday. HB23 * — to allow the governing body of a county or Baltimore City to set special tax rates for certain commercial or industrial property for the purpose of financing transportation improvements or public education. As of press time on Friday, the bill was still in the Senate's Budget and Taxation Committee after passing in the House. Moore will have until May 27 to sign or veto each bill passed by the state legislature during the 2025 session. A bill also can become law if the governor takes no action. Most of the bills that become law will take effect on Oct. 1. Bills related to budget and taxation will take effect on July 1, the first day of fiscal year 2026.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Prosecutors lobby for policy changes
OAKLAND — Prosecutors from the Garrett County State's Attorney's Office are calling on the Maryland General Assembly to pass a law that would offer more protections to victims of child abuse who testify at trial. State's Attorney Christian Mash testified before the House Judiciary Committee last week in support of House Bill 442, which would allow out-of-court statements of child victims to be used in court under limited circumstances. Mash was joined in his support of the bill by Assistant State's Attorneys Mary Burnell and Matthew George. 'This is a modest, practical expansion of existing law, which will serve to benefit those child victims who live in rural jurisdictions, such as Garrett County,' Mash said. Current law requires that an interviewer have specific credentials in order for a child victim's out-of-court statement to be used at trial, Mash said. The bill would expand the types of professionals who can question child victims to include specially trained forensic interviewers. Prosecutors and child welfare attorneys frequently use the 'tender years statute' to limit the extent to which child victims are required to testify in court in the presence of their abuser, Mash said. 'Recounting the details of abuse to a large audience can be daunting for any witness,' Burnell said. 'Child witnesses are especially vulnerable, and expanding the language of the tender years statute can help prevent revictimization of young witnesses.' Mash referred to a tight labor market for licensed social workers in rural areas. Child Advocacy Centers statewide have faced challenges in recruiting and retaining individuals whose credentials align with the existing language of the tender years statute, he said. The difficulty is particularly pronounced in less-populated areas. 'HB442 aims to fix that problem by allowing professionals trained in child forensic interviewing protocols to interview victims of child abuse for use under the statute,' George said. Mash said current restrictions result in an unfair system, where child victims in rural places are less likely to benefit from the intended protections of the law. 'Expanding the statute to include forensic interviewers would correct this disparate impact,' Mash said. 'Children in rural settings are no less deserving of the protections of this law, and it is our hope that state lawmakers recognize that and pass this bill.'
