Bills That Passed

2026 Maryland General Assembly Session

22 April 2026

By Amy Waychoff

HB 444/SB 245 — Immigration Enforcement Agreements - Prohibition

This bill prohibits state and local law enforcement agencies, including county sheriffs, from entering into or maintaining "287(g)" agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

SB 791/HB 1575 — Correctional Services and Public Safety — Immigration Enforcement — Prohibitions (Community Trust Act)

The Community Trust Act prohibits Maryland law enforcement and correctional facilities from honoring ICE detainer requests or notifying federal authorities of an individual's release without a valid judicial warrant. This bill, making Maryland a true “Sanctuary State,” is probably in violation of the Supremacy Clause’s bar on state interference with lawful federal authority. 

SB1/HB0155 – Prohibition on Law Enforcement Officer Face Coverings

This bill targets ICE agents with a ban on face coverings (masks).

HB351/SB 346 -- Civil Actions - Violation of Constitutional Rights (No Kings Act)

This bill would expose federal law enforcement officers to lawsuits in State court brought by individuals who believe their civil rights were violated during federal law enforcement actions. This bill also violates the Supremacy Clause.

HB1017/SB984 -- Private Immigration Detention Facilities - Zoning Requirement

This bill would prevent private buildings from being used as immigration detention facilities.

HB409/SB323 -- Juvenile Court - Jurisdiction, Detention, and Confinement (Youth Charging Reform Act)

This bill seeks to reduce accountability of youth felons by returning jurisdiction to

juvenile court, thereby effectively making it impossible to charge them as adults, and banning life-without-parole sentences for many very serious felonies, including rape and some homicides, for teenagers aged 14-17. It further seeks to reduce the sentences of felons currently serving life-without-parole sentences for crimes committed before turning 18.

SB255/HB 350 — Voting Rights Act of 2026 - Counties and Municipal Corporations

This bill would facilitate frivolous and financially ruinous lawsuits against local

municipalities and counties for vague and arbitrary charges of “diluting” the votes of a “protected class.” It gives minorities the right to sue their county if they do not like the outcome of their local elections.

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Amy Waychoff is a member of the Montgomery County Republican Party Executive Committee.