Press Release from State Senator Mary Beth Carozza

2022 Maryland General Assembly Update

Crossover Week Ten: Gas Tax Suspension, Budget and Carozza Bills Passing, Hearings on Parental Notification and Crisfield Police Bills

 Annapolis, MD – Crossover is Monday, March 21st which is the deadline for each chamber to pass its bills over to the other, without having to jump through extra procedural hoops. There has been a flurry of activity leading up to Crossover including passage of emergency legislation to suspend the gas tax for 30 days, Senate passage of the Fiscal Year ’23 Budget and four of Senator Carozza’s bills, and committee hearings on Carozza’s bill on parental notification of medical procedures and a priority local bill to support the Crisfield Police Department.

 

Gas Tax Suspension & Push to End Automatic Gas Tax

On March 18^th, emergency legislation to suspend the .36 cents gas tax for 30 days was signed into law. “While this a great first step and show of bipartisanship, I have joined with my colleagues in the Senate Republican Caucus in cosponsoring legislation to end the automatic and never-ending tax increase that was passed back in 2013,” said Carozza, who noted that Marylanders would save $37.5 million in FY ’23 and $117 million by FY ’27. “With gas prices at a seven-year high and inflation at a 30-year high, the time is now to end the automatic gas increase,” said Carozza.

 

Senate Passes FY 2023 Budget

The Senate passed the amended version of Governor Hogan’s $58 billion fiscal year ‘23 budget that reflects a $7 billion surplus due to federal COVID relief funds and higher than expected tax revenues. The fiscal year ’23 budget is structurally sound with no deficits and also replenishes Maryland’s Rainy Day Fund.

 

“This budget funds many of our Shore priorities including boosting tourism, ongoing COVID 19 relief and needed funding for our local health departments, and additional funding for law enforcement and education,” said Carozza.

 

Carozza noted that $350 million has been reserved for tax relief but the specifics of how those funds will be used has not yet been determined. “I will continue to push for retiree tax relief to keep Marylanders living, working, and retiring in Maryland,” said Carozza.

 

The Budget now heads over to the House and its Appropriations Committee. The final version of the budget must be agreed upon by both chambers and passed by April 4^th. Passing the budget is the only constitutionally-mandated obligation of the Maryland General Assembly each year. Next week, the Senate will take up the Capitol Budget which funds infrastructure projects throughout the State, and it will follow the same process for final passage.

 

Carozza Bills Pass the Senate Unanimously

This week, four of Carozza’s bills passed the Senate by a unanimous vote. These include Senate Bill 64 Beach Erosion Control District that would provide a mechanism to repair, replace and, with specific limitations, add on to these existing facilities and bring the Ocean City Life-Saving Museum, built in 1891, into compliance with the federal Americans for Disabilities Act and current fire safety codes; Senate Bill 537 Shrimp Fishery Regulations that would allow the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to establish regulations for the new shrimp fishery approved last year; Senate Bill 538 Land Use - Agritourism - Definition that would include special events and occasions within the statewide Agritourism definition to give our farm families more options to diversify and expand rather than selling their valuable farm land for development; and Senate Bill 695 Natural Resources - Voluntary Firewood Treatment Certification Program - Establishment that would allow the Department of Natural Resources the authority to establish a Voluntary Firewood Treatment Certification Program to allow Maryland’s forest operators to continue to export their firewood products to other states.

 

Maryland Parental Involvement Enhancement Act

On March 16th, Senate Bill 891 was introduced by Senator Carozza in the Senate Finance Committee, which would require parental notification of non-emergency medical procedures including abortion and would allow physicians to waive the requirement during a medical emergency or if the minor requests a judicial waiver. During her testimony, Senator Carozza testified, “that the purpose of Senate Bill 891 is to protect our children and to let parents be parents. Many well-respected medical organizations like the Maryland Psychological Association and the Maryland Board of Nursing, to name a couple, agree that most pre-teen and teen age children do not have the cognitive capacity to make medical decisions without parental involvement, and it is not developmentally appropriate to expect them to do so.”

 

During her testimony, Carozza referenced the written testimony of Dr. Peg Naleppa, former Chief Executive of the Peninsula Regional Medical Center and now TidalHealth, registered nurse, mother of two daughters and nana to two granddaughters. “...as a registered nurse with 45 years of experience, I have on numerous occasions personally witnessed or have been informed by a minor of a decision he/she made independently, without parental discussion and consent. Their narrative is often- if only I had known -of both short- term and long-term unintended consequences, I would have chosen a different outcome. These comments beg the question of why didn’t informed consent act to advise the minor at the time of a procedure?”.

 

Michelle Talkington, a mother of six children, Debra Brocato, a Registered Nurse, and Eileen Roberts, Founder and President of Parents for Life testified on Carozza’s panel in strong support of SB 891. 

 

Crisfield Police Department Bill

On March 16th, Carozza’s Senate Bill 958 was heard in the Senate Pensions Subcommittee. SB 958 would allow the members of the Crisfield Police Department to participate in the Law Enforcement Officers’ Pensions System (LEOPS). It also entitles current Crisfield law enforcement officers to eligibility and creditable service in LEOPS for their prior service in the Crisfield Police Department. “This is a local priority bill that would allow the Crisfield Police Department to retain and recruit qualified officers, and to remain competitive with neighboring law enforcement agencies and jurisdictions, during a rampant law enforcement shortage across the Shore and State of Maryland” testified Carozza. 

 

Carozza also publicly thanked Crisfield Police Chief David Dalfonso for  making the trip to Annapolis to testify in person in support of SB 958 and for his determination in working with the Maryland Retirement and Pension System through the process of bringing LEOPS to the Crisfield Police Department.