EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb0510*
HOUSE BILL 510
J3 2lr2389
CF SB 917
By: Delegate Pendergrass
Introduced and read first time: January 21, 2022
Assigned to: Health and Government Operations
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 2, 2022
CHAPTER ______
AN ACT concerning 1
Health Care Facilities – Health Services Cost Review Commission – User Fee 2
Assessment 3
FOR the purpose of altering the maximum amount of total user fees that may be assessed 4
on hospitals and related institutions by the Health Services Cost Review 5
Commission; and generally relating to fees assessed by the Health Services Cost 6
Review Commission. 7
BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 8
Article – Health – General 9
Section 19–213 10
Annotated Code of Maryland 11
(2019 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 12
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 13
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 14
Article – Health – General 15
19–213. 16
(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. 17
(2) “Facilities” means hospitals and related institutions whose rates have 18
been approved by the Commission. 19 2 HOUSE BILL 510
(b) The Commission shall assess and collect user fees on facilities as defined in 1
this section. 2
(c) (1) The total fees assessed by the Commission may not exceed 3
[$16,000,000] THE GREATER OF : 4
(I) 0.1% OF THE IMMEDIATELY P RECEDING FISCAL YEAR ’S 5
BUDGETED, REGULATED , GROSS HOSPITAL REVENUE ; OR 6
(II) THE LARGEST AMOUNT DE TERMINED UNDER THIS 7
PARAGRAPH FOR A FISC AL YEAR DURING THE I MMEDIATELY PRECEDING 5 FISCAL 8
YEARS. 9
(2) The total user fees assessed by the Commission may not exceed the 10
Special Fund appropriation for the Commission by more than 20%. 11
(3) The user fees assessed by the Commission shall be used exclusively to 12
cover the actual documented direct costs of fulfilling the statutory and regulatory duties of 13
the Commission in accordance with the provisions of this subtitle and any administrative 14
costs for services to the Commission provided by the Department. 15
(4) The Commission shall pay all funds collected from fees assessed in 16
accordance with this section into the Health Services Cost Review Commission Fund. 17
(5) The user fees assessed by the Commission may be expended only for 18
purposes authorized by the provisions of this subtitle. 19
(6) The amount specified in paragraph (1) of this subsection limits only the 20
total user fees the Commission may assess in a fiscal year. 21
(d) (1) There is a Health Services Cost Review Commission Fund. 22
(2) The Fund is a special continuing, nonlapsing fund that is not subject to 23
§ 7–302 of the State Finance and Procurement Article. 24
(3) The Treasurer shall separately hold, and the Comptroller shall account 25
for, the Fund. 26
(4) The Fund shall be invested and reinvested in the same manner as other 27
State funds. 28
(5) Any investment earnings shall be retained to the credit of the Fund. 29
(6) The Fund shall be subject to an audit by the Office of Legislative Audits 30
as provided for in § 2–1220 of the State Government Article. 31 HOUSE BILL 510 3
(7) This section may not be construed to prohibit the Fund from receiving 1
funds from any other source. 2
(8) The Fund shall be used only to provide funding for the Commission and 3
for the purposes authorized under this subtitle. The costs of the Commission include the 4
administrative costs incurred by the Department on behalf of the Commission. 5
(e) The Commission shall: 6
(1) Assess user fees for each facility equal to the sum of: 7
(i) The amount equal to one half of the total user fees times the ratio 8
of admissions of the facility to total admissions of all facilities; and 9
(ii) The amount equal to one half of the total user fees times the ratio 10
of gross operating revenue of each facility to total gross operating revenues of all facilities; 11
(2) Establish minimum and maximum assessments; and 12
(3) Assess each facility on or before June 30 of each year. 13
(f) On or before September 1 of each year, each facility assessed under this 14
section shall make payment to the Commission. The Commission shall make provision for 15
partial payments. 16
(g) Any bill not paid within 30 days of an agreed payment date may be subject to 17
an interest penalty to be determined by the Commission. 18
(h) (1) This section shall terminate and be of no effect on the first day of July 19
following the cessation of a waiver by law or agreement for Medicare and Medicaid between 20
the State of Maryland and the federal government. 21
(2) If notice of intent to terminate is made by the federal government to 22
this State prior to the first day of an intervening session of the Maryland General Assembly, 23
this section shall expire June 30 of the following calendar year. However, under no 24
circumstances shall less than seven calendar months occur between notice of termination 25
and expiration of this section. 26
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the Laws of Maryland read as 27
follows: 28
Article – Health – General 29
19–213. 30
(a) (1) In this section the following words have the meanings indicated. 31 4 HOUSE BILL 510
(2) “Facilities” means hospitals and related institutions whose rates have 1
been approved by the Commission. 2
(b) The Commission shall assess and collect user fees on facilities as defined in 3
this section. 4
(c) (1) The total fees assessed by the Commission may not exceed 5
[$16,000,000] THE AVERAGE OF THE A MOUNTS DETERMINED UN DER THIS 6
PARAGRAPH FOR FISCAL YEARS 2023, 2024, AND 2025. 7
(2) The total user fees assessed by the Commission may not exceed the 8
Special Fund appropriation for the Commission by more than 20%. 9
(3) The user fees assessed by the Commission shall be used exclusively to 10
cover the actual documented direct costs of fulfilling the statutory and regulatory duties of 11
the Commission in accordance with the provisions of this subtitle and any administrative 12
costs for services to the Commission provided by the Department. 13
(4) The Commission shall pay all funds collected from fees assessed in 14
accordance with this section into the Health Services Cost Review Commission Fund. 15
(5) The user fees assessed by the Commission may be expended only for 16
purposes authorized by the provisions of this subtitle. 17
(6) The amount specified in paragraph (1) of this subsection limits only the 18
total user fees the Commission may assess in a fiscal year. 19
(d) (1) There is a Health Services Cost Review Commission Fund. 20
(2) The Fund is a special continuing, nonlapsing fund that is not subject to 21
§ 7–302 of the State Finance and Procurement Article. 22
(3) The Treasurer shall separately hold, and the Comptroller shall account 23
for, the Fund. 24
(4) The Fund shall be invested and reinvested in the same manner as other 25
State funds. 26
(5) Any investment earnings shall be retained to the credit of the Fund. 27
(6) The Fund shall be subject to an audit by the Office of Legislative Audits 28
as provided for in § 2–1220 of the State Government Article. 29
(7) This section may not be construed to prohibit the Fund from receiving 30
funds from any other source. 31
HOUSE BILL 510 5
(8) The Fund shall be used only to provide funding for the Commission and 1
for the purposes authorized under this subtitle. The costs of the Commission include the 2
administrative costs incurred by the Department on behalf of the Commission. 3
(e) The Commission shall: 4
(1) Assess user fees for each facility equal to the sum of: 5
(i) The amount equal to one half of the total user fees times the ratio 6
of admissions of the facility to total admissions of all facilities; and 7
(ii) The amount equal to one half of the total user fees times the ratio 8
of gross operating revenue of each facility to total gross operating revenues of all facilities; 9
(2) Establish minimum and maximum assessments; and 10
(3) Assess each facility on or before June 30 of each year. 11
(f) On or before September 1 of each year, each facility assessed under this 12
section shall make payment to the Commission. The Commission shall make provision for 13
partial payments. 14
(g) Any bill not paid within 30 days of an agreed payment date may be subject to 15
an interest penalty to be determined by the Commission. 16
(h) (1) This section shall terminate and be of no effect on the first day of July 17
following the cessation of a waiver by law or agreement for Medicare and Medicaid between 18
the State of Maryland and the federal government. 19
(2) If notice of intent to terminate is made by the federal government to 20
this State prior to the first day of an intervening session of the Maryland General Assembly, 21
this section shall expire June 30 of the following calendar year. However, under no 22
circumstances shall less than seven calendar months occur between notice of termination 23
and expiration of this section. 24
SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That Section 1 of this Act shall take 25
effect July 1, 2022. Section 1 of this Act shall remain effective for a period of 3 years and, 26
at the end of June 30, 2025, Section 1 of this Act, with no further action required by the 27
General Assembly, shall be abrogated and of no further force and effect. 28
SECTION 4. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That Section 2 of this Act shall take 29
effect on the taking effect of the termination provision specified in Section 3 of this Act. If 30
that termination provision takes effect, Section 1 of this Act, with no further action required 31
by the General Assembly, shall be abrogated and of no further force and effect. 32
SECTION 2. 5. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That , except as provided in 33
Sections 3 and 4 of this Act, this Act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 34