On February 15th, Governor Hogan signed his primary effort of the 2021 legislative session, the RELIEF Act, into law. After undergoing a series of expansions bringing the total to well over $1 billion in direct payments, tax breaks, and business aid, the measure aims to enable hundreds of thousands of state residents and businesses to recover from the financial hardships brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. As reported by Maryland Matters,
Hogan, along with Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) and House Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D-Baltimore County), lauded the speedy and largely bipartisan passage of the RELIEF Act through the legislature before signing the bill into law Monday.
“It’s almost unheard of for any major piece of legislation to pass in such a short period of time, and with such universal bipartisan support,” said Hogan, who repeatedly pressed for quick passage of the legislation.
The relief package was subject to heated debate and several amendments as it made its way through the General Assembly over the past month, with lawmakers characterizing its final form as a “compromise.”
“This bill that got passed is not a Democrat bill,” Jones said. “It’s not a Republican bill. It’s a bill for the people that all of us here represent.”
Ferguson said the bill, which was approved unanimously by the Senate and nearly unanimously by the House, reflects a bipartisan effort by the legislature.
“This is an important day,” he said. “It’s a day when we get to show the people the best of our politics and what we have to offer when we focus on results.”
Under the RELIEF Act, low-income Marylanders (those who have claimed an earned income tax credit when they filed their 2019 federal taxes) who still live in Maryland will receive direct stimulus payments of $500 for families and $300 for individuals. According to the comptroller’s office, 98% of all payments are set to go out within a week (about 63% will receive it through direct deposits, 35% will get checks in the mail, and the remaining eligible will need to provide the comptroller with their updated information). As it stands now, the measure does not provide stimulus for middle- to high-income Marylanders, or those who file taxes through individual taxpayer identification numbers.
Small businesses and unemployed Marylanders are also set to see substantial tax cuts as a result of the relief effort. Small businesses will be able to hold off on paying unemployment taxes until next year, certain businesses will be able to hold on to a percentage of the sales taxes they collect from customers, and businesses that participated in state pandemic loan and grant programs no longer have to pay tax on those expenditures. State and local taxes on unemployment benefits for Marylanders who meet certain income criteria (individuals earning less than $75,000 or families earning less than a total of $100,000) have also been cut, and those who have been waiting on unemployment checks for at least 30 days are eligible for a one-time payment of $1,000.
In addition, funds from the Rainy Day Fund and Local Income Tax Reserve Account are being transferred to the “Recovery Now Fund” to be used to provide financial assistance to individuals,
businesses, and nonprofit organizations; funding for the Maryland Department of Health and UI program; and the restoration of Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) transit services and highway maintenance funding. A list of the specific programs funded can be found in Appendix 1 of the bill’s fiscal note.
As the measure was signed into law on Monday, Governor Hogan remained optimistic about the coming months, saying
“We still face a long and difficult winter ahead, and many Marylanders are still in need, but our vaccination rate is rising every day. As we get more shots into the arms of our most vulnerable citizens and all of our key health metrics are continuing to decline, and now with this RELIEF Act being signed into law, even more tax relief and economic stimulus help is on the way for our struggling families and small businesses”.
