Dear Friends,

Yesterday was crossover, the day by which a bill needs to pass in its house of origin to be guaranteed a hearing in the other house. Committees have been very busy and we have spent a lot of time on the Senate floor debating and voting on bills. Please scroll down for an update on which bills in my legislative agenda have crossed over.

As a member of the Budget & Taxation Committee, we have spent the past 60 days or so reviewing executive agencies budgets and crafting a budget which was passed by the Senate last week and is being considered by the House this week. This budget is built on the one sent to us by the Governor and works in tandem with the Budget Reconciliation Financing Act to maintain a balanced budget in 2026 and 2027. As the budget left the Senate, it leaves a cash surplus of $250 million and cash reserves of over $2 billion in the Rainy Day Fund. It invests in priorities that support our most vulnerable residents and in programs that will grow our economy. It will provide assistance to lower energy bills, expand the number of families who can participate in the child care scholarship program, invests in schools, housing and healthcare.

I’ve enjoyed chairing the subcommittee on Public Safety, Transportation and Environment where our small but mighty subcommittee has delved into the budgets of 47 different executive agencies and programs including the Departments of Transportation, Environment, Natural Resources, the Department of Public Safety, Correctional Services, and the Judiciary, among many others. We look forward to working with the corresponding House subcommittees in conference committee later this week to work out differences between the budgets.

As co-chair of the Joint Audit and Evaluation Committee, I’ve also had the opportunity to work on a number of bills to ensure that our state agencies are addressing issues identified by the Office of Legislative Audits, particularly with regard to repeat findings. Bills have passed both houses that will create a more refined and prescriptive approach to ensure that we are holding our state agencies to high standards of accountability. In another bill, we focus on the qualifications of those providing financial leadership to our largest agencies, ensuring that they are being led by individuals who have the experience and expertise required to be effective stewards of our public resources.

As we enter the final weeks of session, we’ll be busy fine-tuning bills and the budget. Rest assured that my focus continues to be on bringing costs down and protecting Marylanders from the overreaches of the federal government. As always, please feel free to reach out if my office can be of assistance to you.

Shelly L. Hettleman
Senator, District 11

In the Community
Legislative Updates
Transportation Updates
Immigration Updates
In the News
Senatorial Scholarship
Intern Spotlight
Scam Alert
Energy/Environment Updates
Education News
Community Events & Updates
Contact Information

Top Left: Many thanks to all those who joined me for Shelly@thedeli at Gourmet Girls! We had a good discussion about what's happening in session, as well as important issues like cost of living, energy costs, housing affordability, and transportation.

Top Right: Thanks to all who joined the Maryland Legislative Jewish Caucus for the plaque unveiling and reception commemorating the 200th anniversary of the “Jew Bill,” the landmark legislation that granted Jews the right to hold public office in Maryland. Special thanks to all who helped make the event possible!

Bottom Left: I recently participated in a shadow day with the Maryland Legislative Jewish Caucus and had the pleasure of hosting my shadow student, Abby Cohen.

Bottom Right: With long legislative days and budget deadlines approaching, taking a few minutes to meet some dogs at the American Kennel Club’s event was some much-needed puppy therapy.

Bills on the Move!

The following bills (and crossfiles) have been voted out of committee, on the floor, and will be heard in the opposite chamber. For a complete list of my bills and to track legislation, click here.

SB648/HB856 School Personnel Vetting and Hiring Transparency Act advances student safety in Maryland by strengthening transparency and accountability in educator hiring practices. The bill requires every local education agency (LEA) to use the NASDTEC Educator Identification Clearinghouse as part of the process for hiring and reviewing educators. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

HB83 Family and Law Enforcement Protection Act provides a proactive and life-saving approach to lessen the devastating effects of domestic violence by preventing domestic abusers from having access to firearms after protective orders have been issued against them. The House hearing can be viewed here.

HB661 Commemorative Months - Muslim American Heritage and Jewish American Heritage Months encourages inclusion and public awareness as it requires the Governor to proclaim January as Muslim American Heritage month and May as Jewish American Heritage month. The Senate hearing can be viewed here and the House here.

SB805 Income Tax - Student Loan Debt Relief Tax Credit ensures that Maryland’s tax credit program does not place additional burdens on borrowers already reeling from the disorder of their loan repayment programs. The hearing can be viewed here.

SB530/HB811 Village Multigenerational Third Places Act strengthens opportunities for social connection within existing aging in place programs. This bill allows the Department of Aging to make grants to nonprofit organizations and area agencies on aging to support social connections through events or gatherings at multigenerational third places. Multigenerational third places are defined as community spaces that support social connection, events, or gatherings among individuals of different ages. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

HB437 Transportation and Climate Alignment Act of 2026 encourages better state investment in multimodal transit so that Marylanders have more affordable and accessible transportation options and spend less time in traffic. It also offers a meaningful step toward accomplishing our state’s Climate Pollution Reduction Plan. The House hearing can be viewed here.

SB305 Incarcerated Individual Training and Reentry Grant Fund authorizes the Governor to appropriate money toward grants to nonprofits to provide training in automotive repair to incarcerated or formerly incarcerated people, a step that may help them successfully reenter their communities. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

HB571 Nonprofit Housing Corporations - Taxes and Special Assessments Exemptions this legislation would modernize Maryland’s tax exemption framework to better support nonprofit affordable housing developers. It respects local authority, reflects real-world development practice, and strengthens Maryland’s nonprofit affordable housing sector at a time when the need has never been greater. Watch the House hearing here.

SB473/HB829 Human Trafficking Awareness and Prevention Training strengthens Maryland’s response to human trafficking. Since trafficking often involves transportation between locations, drivers may be among the few neutral third parties to encounter a victim outside the trafficker’s immediate control. This bill requires awareness training for licensed taxicab drivers, for-hire drivers and transportation network drivers. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

SB340/HB671 Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman proposes a modest, targeted budget reform to allocate funding to the Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman, which protects the health, safety, dignity, and autonomy of older adults and individuals with disabilities who live in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and other long-term care settings. Watch the Senate hearing here.

SB253/HB388 Baltimore County Public Library - Collective Bargaining - Supervisory Employees promotes equitable treatment by granting supervisory employees the same rights to collective bargaining as other Baltimore County Library staff members, ensuring all voices are heard in organizational decisions. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

SB531/HB491 Victims of Sexually Assaultive Behavior - Verbal Waivers addresses a critical gap in how we protect survivors of sexual assault by ensuring that the waiver process protections cannot be circumvented through informal practices. Survivors deserve a system that prioritizes their safety, dignity, accountability, and autonomy. The Senate hearing can be viewed here.

Bills on the Move!

Get to Know TSMO!