The 2022 Legislative Session will commence today and lawmakers have a wide array of issues they will be focusing on in the coming weeks. The General Assembly will need to decide how to allocate funds of a considerable budget surplus for the current and upcoming fiscal years. Senate President Bill Ferguson and Speaker of the House Adrienne Jones have already been thinking of ways to allocate the surplus. As reported by The Frederick News-Post,
“I think people have heard this $4.6 billion like it’s time that we can fund everything possible, but we’ve got to be very, very thoughtful and moderate about how we approach it, because we don’t want to set ourselves up for a fiscal cliff in two to three years from now,” Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Baltimore Democrat, said.
House Speaker Adrienne Jones said using the surplus to help put more people back to work will be a top priority. The speaker highlighted upgrades to parks, bridges, schools and information technology systems as areas of emphasis.
“We are going to focus on making critical upgrades rather than creating new long-term spending priorities,” Jones, a Baltimore County Democrat, said. “Essentially, we want to be able to put funds in so we can see more immediate results.”
As COVID-19 cases surge, legislators will also be focusing on how to best mitigate the damages caused by the pandemic and will likely produce legislation congruent with the trends of cases within the state. They will also need to decide what to do with pandemic funding from the federal government. Maryland Matters quoted Senator Jim Rosapepe as saying, “The labor market is significantly broken…Dealing with the economy and dealing with the labor market problems will be a significant issue during session,” in regards to issues caused by the pandemic.
Here are some of the other main issues that the General Assembly will be focusing on this upcoming session:
CANNABIS
Legislators are prioritizing efforts to get a referendum on the ballot this fall to legalize recreational marijuana. According to Maryland Matters, Speaker Jones said the legislation will be debated this year through an equity lens.
“Equity in cannabis policy is not just who gets licenses to grow and distribute cannabis,” she said. “It also has to do with expungement of criminal records for those who have been doing prison time for marijuana.”
CLIMATE
Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee Chair Paul Pinsky and House Environment and Transportation Committee Chair Kumar Barve are determined to create and pass a comprehensive bill tackling major climate issues that failed to pass last session. Maryland Matters predicts that “The bill will almost certainly include a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, as well as guidelines for electric vehicles, green buildings, environmental justice initiatives and more.”
It is likely that the Senate will focus on a single, all-encompassing bill, whereas, the House is likely to propose varying legislation for the issue. Among other climate issues to be considered this year, the General Assembly will propose to divest the state’s pension portfolio from fossil fuel companies.
ABORTION
There is a possibility that the legislature will pursue including abortion rights in the Constitution. Former Speaker Busch had previously proposed the idea and, according to Maryland Matters, Speaker Jones said the idea was on the table.
As reported by Maryland Matters,
Bills haven’t been introduced yet, but there will be legislation to make women’s reproductive health services more accessible and affordable — and increase the number of trained and licensed abortion providers in the state. There will also be a bill to make it illegal to prosecute women who seek abortions or people who help them — the opposite of the Texas abortion ban that went into effect last year.
CRIME
Governor Hogan this week proposed to increase police funding by $500 million and renewed pressure on the legislature to pass judicial transparency bills and a measure that would crack down on gun crimes, both of which have failed to move forward in the past.
“Ghost guns,” which are guns that can be assembled at home and are virtually untraceable, will be a major topic of discussion this upcoming session. According to The Daily Record, “Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh – who shepherded Maryland’s ban on assault-style weapons as a state senator – will spearhead legislation intended to stop the proliferation of privately made firearms, more commonly known as ghost guns.”
Juvenile justice is another issue at the forefront for many lawmakers heading into the 2022 Session. Senator Jill Carter proposed the Juvenile Interrogation Protection Act which, according to The Daily Record, would require police to “attempt to notify a child’s parent or guardian prior to interrogation and prohibit questioning until the child has consulted with a private attorney or public defender.”
As reported by The Daily Record,
Other bills expected to be introduced this term would prevent youngsters from automatically being charged as adults even when they are alleged to have committed very violent crimes; require criminally charged juveniles under age 13 to be sent to social services rather than to juvenile court; and ensure juveniles have the right to counsel during police interrogation.
REDISTRICTING
The legislature is tasked with finalizing new state legislative districts and is expected to complete that quickly.
As reported by Maryland Matters,
The Democrats in the General Assembly are almost certain to adopt the map that emerged last week from the Legislative Redistricting Advisory Commission. Unlike with congressional redistricting, the governor cannot veto whatever map the legislature produces — though it is still subject to a legal challenge.
Not only will lawmakers be tasked with tackling the issues outlined above, they will also be getting used to a big shift in leadership this session.
Despite this year being an election year, there has already been several changes within the legislature, especially among leadership roles. Some changes include:
This year the House will have two new committee chairs: Del. Vanessa E. Atterbeary (D-Howard) at the Ways and Means Committee, and Del. C.T. Wilson (D-Charles) at Economic Matters.
The top two Republican leaders in the House will also be new this year: Minority Leader Jason C. Buckel (Allegany) and Minority Whip Haven N. Shoemaker Jr. (Carroll). Republicans in the Senate will also have a new minority whip, Sen. Justin D. Ready (Carroll).
At least two more House committees will have new leaders beginning in 2023: Appropriations and Health and Government Operations. The same is true of the Finance Committee in the Senate. –Maryland Matters
For more information, please visit the resources below.
The Daily Record – Ghost Guns and Juvenile Justice
