Clarence Lam

This bill strengthens the Public Employees Relations Board by allowing union representatives to meet with employees remotely for any reason, not just health concerns. CPAC opposes increased support to public sector unions and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-01-30 by a vote of 35-11. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 112-26. The bill later became law.

This bill extends the termination date of the Minority Business Enterprise Program by one year and establishes a new deadline for the program’s disparity study. CPAC opposes any DEI measures being implemented in the private sector and opposes this legislation. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 121-16. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 47-0. The bill later became law.

This bill changes how landlords are able to calculate late fees on their tenants. Previously, the late fee cap was 5% of the total amount due. Under this bill, the late fee cap changes to just 5% of the unpaid rent only. CPAC opposes legislation which erodes property rights and hurts small businesses and opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-02-14 by a vote of 121-12. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-04 by a vote of 44-0. The bill later became law.

Mandates the Maryland Department of Health to create a graphic data dashboard which includes health data, including health disparities, between different groups. The categories include race, ethnicity and gender. CPAC opposes legislation with DEI at its core and opposes this legislation. The House passed this bill on 2025-03-11 by a vote of 111-29. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-03 by a vote of 46-0. The bill later became law.

This bill requires accommodation intermediaries to collect and send the hotel rental tax to the Comptroller of the state rather than to individual counties. State law would now override any local law or agreement related to hotel rental tax, including any exemptions counties made for this tax. CPAC opposes the erosion of local government authority and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 46-1. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 119-20. The bill later became law.

This bill requires the state’s health benefit exchange to promote access to health insurance for childcare professionals. This assistance includes helping childcare professionals who lose Medicaid coverage and providing informational resources or referrals for those in the childcare community. CPAC opposes government carveouts or assistance aimed at helping one specific occupation group and opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-03-17 by a vote of 109-29. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-03 by a vote of 47-0. The bill later became law.

Requires the Maryland Department of the Environment to produce a report on greenhouse gas emissions relating to state procurement. Also requires the report to include potential strategies to reduce emissions tied to state purchasing and procurement. CPAC opposes unnecessary government spending on environmental issues and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-05 by a vote of 29-13. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 100-38. The bill was later vetoed by the Governor, and the veto was overridden by the legislature, making the bill law.

This bill expands the Uninsured Employer’s Fund in the state. The bill increased the assessment on workers' compensation awards. This increases the funds which are taken from a worker’s compensation award and given to the Uninsured Employer’s Fund. CPAC opposes actions which effectively share costs unfairly with all employers, and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 34-13. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-03 by a vote of 100-37. The bill was later vetoed by the Governor.

This bill establishes a commission to study and make recommendations for benefits to be offered to individuals whose ancestors were enslaved in the State. The benefits may include official statements of apology, monetary compensation, property tax rebates, debt forgiveness, higher education tuition payment waivers and reimbursement and more. CPAC opposes racist laws which favor those with a certain skin color, ethnicity or ancestry and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-03-14 by a vote of 32-13. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 101-36. The bill was later vetoed by the Governor, and the veto was overridden by the legislature, making the bill law.

This bill creates a new office of Registered Apprentice Development inside the Maryland Department of Labor. Furthermore, it sets up a new fund to create financial incentives for employers to train apprentices. It also recognizes Qualified Intermediaries, non-profits and other organizations who help connect apprentices to employers, and funds them through either grants or state contracts. CPAC opposes the government choosing winners or losers in the free market and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-03-17 by a vote of 33-9. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-01 by a vote of 104-31. The bill later became law.

Increases several fees relating to environmental regulations. It significantly raises the cap on emissions-based permit fees for industrial companies. It increases the fees for projects that impact wetlands and waterways. Finally, it creates an annual dam registration fee which applies to many privately owned dams. CPAC opposes unnecessary and harmful environmental regulations and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-03-17 by a vote of 33-14. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 96-44. The bill later became law.

Establishes a public grant program to help fund medical abortions. This program would receive funding from the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and from the state budget. CPAC believes abortion is always a human tragedy and opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-03-13 by a vote of 98-37. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-02 by a vote of 31-15. The bill later became law.

Establishes a procedure which allows incarcerated individuals to appeal to judges to reduce their sentences. Only those who meet certain criteria are allowed to file petition. This criteria includes serving at least 20 years of the sentence and not being convicted of certain crimes, such as being a sex offender or serving life without parole. Besides this, the measure also gives significant power to State’s Attorneys to file a motion for a sentence reduction for any incarcerated person. CPAC opposes any measures which diminish justice against major criminals and endangers public safety, and opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-04 by a vote of 32-12. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 97-41. The bill later became law.

Makes significant changes to how eviction warrants are handled in the state. Tenants are now granted a 10-day grace period following the execution of an eviction warrant to obtain personal property. Requires that a landlord must send an eviction notice via mail, posted on the door and sent out electronically if possible. If a landlord fails to meet these and other conditions a sheriff is prohibited from proceeding with an eviction. CPAC opposes overburdensome regulations which hurt businesses and opposes this legislation. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-04 by a vote of 34-12. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 97-41. The bill later became law.

This bill modifies and continues the state’s massive education funding program, which was passed years earlier, the “Blueprint for Maryland’s Future”. HB504 would allow local governments to exceed property tax and revenue limitations to fund schools. The bill would decrease the “per pupil foundation amount” and reduced funding for mental health and behavior services in order to pay for the original program. CPAC opposes massive spending priorities which hurt state budgets and opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 101-38. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 34-13. The bill later became law.

This bill makes several changes to the state’s procurement process. It allows state agencies to give a “preference” to businesses that treat workers as W-2 employees. It also requires bidders for large contracts to submit a workforce diversity plan. CPAC opposes unnecessary regulations and DEI and opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 118-19. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 47-0. The bill later became law.

Massively expanded the power of the Prescription Drug Affordability Board (PDAB) in the state. The bill would allow the PDAB to eventually implement price controls on any medication in the state, with a focus on drugs that present “affordability challenges”. This board is unelected. While the bill does include a “tryout” phase focused only on government workers for the board’s enhanced powers, this only lasts 1 year. CPAC opposes price controls by unelected boards and opposes this legislation. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-04 by a vote of 33-12. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-05 by a vote of 100-38. The bill later became law.

Imposes a long list of new taxes and fees on residents in the state in order to balance the state budget. Some of the new taxes include a new tax bracket with a higher tax rate for people who make over $600,000, a new 6% tax on vending machine products and a new 3% sales tax on all data and IT services. Some new fees include an increased vehicle emissions inspection fee, a tire fee and doubling of the certificate of title fee. CPAC opposes tax increases which hurt jobs and fees which harm middle-class Americans and opposes this legislation. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 94-46. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 29-18. The bill later became law.

This bill mandates that the state’s health department create a new statewide “Health Education Framework”. This framework must include topics such as family life and human sexuality, gender identity, sexual orientation and mental and emotional health. Under the measure, parents have a limited opt-out right and can only opt-out of certain courses. Besides this, State Superintendents would have the power to withhold state funds from a school system if the county curriculum does not align with the state-developed content standards. CPAC opposes educational indoctrination, especially relating to topics such as gender identity and sexual orientation, and so opposes this bill. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-03 by a vote of 33-12. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-05 by a vote of 97-38. The bill later became law.

This bill significantly strengthens the state’s loan assistance program for federal employees by removing the time limit in which you could receive a loan and allowing the state to entirely forgive loans under certain circumstances. Also allows the governor to transfer funds from the state’s “Rainy Day Fund” to help pay for the assistance loan accounts. CPAC opposes a large, bloated government, supports private sector employment and ultimately opposes this bill. The House passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 105-33. The Senate passed this bill on 2025-04-07 by a vote of 33-13. The bill later became law.