MD legislative session is underway!

The state legislature in Annapolis is now in session. We will try as best we can to post here information about bills that may be of interest to the equestrian community. Please let us know if you hear of anything pending there that we have not listed - it is a very busy session (over 2000 bills are typically introduced) and we must rely on our volunteer staff to search the web for items of interest.

Note that you, too, can search the legislature's website. You can enter topics of interest, and any relevant proposed legislation will be highlighted. On that page, you can also find links to the various Committees' hearing schedules, as well as to the schedule for final floor votes on legislation that has been passed out of committee. Note that, in Maryland, every bill that is introduced gets a hearing, and every interested person is entitled to testify. On the page detailing the Committee schedules, you can find information about what you need to do to testify.

A functioning democracy requires that "We, the people" get involved!

Here are some bills of interest that have been introduced so far:


SB 2 
Senator Colburn
DORCHESTER COUNTY – TURKEY HUNTING ON PUBLIC LAND – SUNDAYS
Authorizing a person to hunt turkey on public land on any Sunday during the spring turkey hunting season in Dorchester County; and making the Act an emergency measure.
EMERGENCY BILL
NR, § 10-410(a) - amended
Assigned to: Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs

SB 24
Senator Pipkin
QUEEN ANNE’S COUNTY – DEER HUNTING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY – SUNDAYS
Authorizing a person to hunt deer on private property in Queen Anne’s County using specified hunting equipment on specified Sundays during specified hunting seasons.
EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2013
NR, § 10-410(a) - amended
Assigned to: Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs

SB 37
Senator Zirkin
CRIMINAL LAW – ANIMAL CRUELTY – PAYMENT OF COSTS
Authorizing a court to order a defendant convicted of a specified charge of animal cruelty, as a condition of sentencing, to pay, in addition to any other fines and costs, all reasonable costs incurred in removing, housing, treating, or euthanizing an animal confiscated from the defendant.
EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2013
CR, §§ 10-604, 10-606, 10-607, and 10-608 - amended
Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings

SB 41
Senator Pipkin
KENT COUNTY – DEER HUNTING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY – SUNDAYS
Authorizing a person to hunt deer on private property in Kent County using specified hunting equipment on specified Sundays during specified hunting seasons.
EFFECTIVE JULY 1, 2013
NR, § 10-410(a) - amended
Assigned to: Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs


SB 89
Senator Pipkin
KENT COUNTY – TURKEY HUNTING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY – SUNDAYS
Authorizing a person to hunt turkey on private property on Sundays during the spring turkey hunting season in Kent County; and making the Act an emergency measure.
EMERGENCY BILL
NR, § 10-410(a) - amended
Assigned to: Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs