With the start of the 2024 Maryland General Assembly Session just days away, House and Senate leadership have released the list of prefiled bills.
A total of 565 prefiled bills have been posted — 225 from the House and 310 from the Senate. Bills that have been prefiled are introduced and assigned to a committee on the first day of the session. While the prefiled bills have a bit of a head start in the process, it does not necessarily mean that the bills will be scheduled for immediate hearings or in the order they were introduced. Each committee determines the schedule for their bill hearings.
While the prefile deadline is typically in November, legislators have until January 19th to request a bill with a guarantee that it will be drafted in time to meet the introduction deadlines. Bills must be introduced (i.e. “dropped in the hopper”) by February 5th in the Senate and February 9th in the House to meet the introduction deadlines. Bills introduced after those dates will be referred to the Senate Rules Committee or the House Rules and Executive Nominations Committee. Those late filed bills face additional hurdles and a much more difficult path to passage.
To view the Senate prefiled bills visit: Legislation – Senate (maryland.gov)
To view the House prefiled bills visit: Legislation – House (maryland.gov)
*Please note that the text of the prefiled bills may not be immediately available but should be within a few days.
