Senate President Bill Ferguson sent a letter to the Senate of Maryland outlining the guidelines and protocols in place for the legislative session that starts on January 12th at noon. Important information included in the letter is as follows:

MASKING POLICY

The masking policy follows the requirements made by Governor Hogan earlier this week regarding face coverings in government buildings.

Any individual who needs to gain entrance to or attend a meeting in the State House or Legislative Services, Senate, or House buildings must wear a face mask consistently in all public spaces of those buildings, regardless of vaccination status.

SENATE FLOOR SCHEDULE 

The Senate will convene in person and may be on the floor five days a week.

  • Mondays – 8:00 p.m.
  • Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – 10:00 a.m.
  • Fridays – 11:00 a.m.

PUBLIC ACCESS – SENATE CHAMBER

Members of the public are allowed in the gallery of the Senate Chamber where seating will be spaced to allow for social distancing. Space in the gallery will be reserved for press.

PUBLIC ACCESS – MILLER AND JAMES SENATE OFFICE BUILDINGS

Audience seating in committee rooms will not be open to the public until February 14th, except for press. When seating opens to the public, there will be physical distance between seats and air purifiers will be running in committee rooms.

PUBLIC ACCESS – MEMBER AND COMMITTEE OFFICES 

No more than four individuals, not including staff or members, are allowed in a member’s office at one time.

In addition, members and committees may implement additional protocols for their offices, such as requiring appointments before meeting with members of the public, holding virtual-only meetings, or requiring proof of vaccination prior to doing an in-person meeting.

COMMITTEE HEARINGS AND BRIEFINGS 

All Senate committee hearings and briefings will be held virtually until February 11th and will be in person starting on February 14th. Unlike the 2021 Session, the number of witnesses who may testify on a bill will not be limited. Committee chairs will determine witness guidelines regarding testimony length and late testimony.

WITNESS SIGN-UP

All witnesses must create a “MyMGA” account and sign up to testify through the Maryland General Assembly Website.

Until February 11th, witness sign-up will be two (2) business days in advance of a scheduled bill hearing and will be open from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. All selected witnesses will receive the Zoom log-in information the night before the hearing. Please note that witnesses cannot designate someone else to take their slot.

Beginning February 14th, witness sign-up will begin the business day before the hearing at 4:00 p.m. and continue until the morning of the hearing at 10:00 a.m.

Witnesses that only wish to provide written testimony still must do so through the website and create a “MyMGA” account.

VOTING SESSIONS

Voting sessions for each committee will be scheduled by the committee chairs and members will vote in person from committee rooms. Voting sessions will be streamed live and closed to the public until February 11th. Beginning February 14th, members of the public will have access to voting sessions. Outcomes of the voting session will be posted on the Maryland General Assembly website within one business day.

For more information, please see the memorandum from President Ferguson.