Maryland 2022 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB550 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1
2	2
3	3	EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
4	4	[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
5	5	sb0550
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 550
8	8	E5 2lr2041
9	9	CF HB 453
10	10	By: Senator Carter
11	11	Introduced and read first time: January 31, 2022
12	12	Assigned to: Judicial Proceedings
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Correctional Facilities – Transgender, Nonbinary, and Intersex Inmates 2
19	19	(Transgender Respect, Agency, and Dignity Act) 3
20	20
21	21	FOR the purpose of prohibiting an employee of a correctional facility from discriminating 4
22	22	against inmates on the basis of certain protected classes; requiring the managing 5
23	23	official of a correctional facility to develop a written nondiscrimination policy 6
24	24	regarding inmates; establishing certain requirements for correctional facilities 7
25	25	relating to the gender identity of inmates and inmates who are transgender, 8
26	26	nonbinary, or intersex; and generally relating to correctional facilities and 9
27	27	transgender, nonbinary, and intersex inmates. 10
28	28
29	29	BY adding to 11
30	30	Article – Correctional Services 12
31	31	Section 9–618 through 9–620 13
32	32	Annotated Code of Maryland 14
33	33	(2017 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 15
34	34
35	35	Preamble 16
36	36
37	37	WHEREAS, The term “transgender” is broad and inclusive of all gender identities 17
38	38	different from the gender a person was assigned at birth, including transsexual, two–spirit, 18
39	39	and māhū. “Nonbinary” is an inclusive term used to describe individuals who may 19
40	40	experience a gender identity that is neither exclusively male nor female or is in between or 20
41	41	beyond both of those genders, including gender fluid, agender or without gender, third 21
42	42	gender, genderqueer, gender variant, and gender nonconforming. The term “intersex” is a 22
43	43	broad and inclusive term referring to people whose anatomy, hormones, or chromosomes 23
44	44	fall outside the strict male and female binary; and 24
45	45
46	46	WHEREAS, The United S tates Supreme Court recognized that incarcerated 25
47	47	transgender individuals are particularly vulnerable to sexual abuse and sexual harassment 26
48	48	and that disregarding the known risks to a transgender woman constitutes deliberate 27 2 SENATE BILL 550
49	49
50	50
51	51	indifference in violation of the federal Constitution; and 1
52	52
53	53	WHEREAS, Official data collected by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics confirms 2
54	54	that nationwide, incarcerated transgender individuals experience exceptionally high rates 3
55	55	of sexual victimization. In a 2011–2012 survey, almost 40% of incarcerated transgender 4
56	56	individuals reported experiencing sexual victimization while incarcerated compared to 4% 5
57	57	of all incarcerated individuals; and 6
58	58
59	59	WHEREAS, A congressional study found that instances of prison rape often go 7
60	60	unreported, and that “most prison staff are not adequately trained or prepared to prevent, 8
61	61	report or treat inmate sexual assaults”. 40% of transgender women respondents reported 9
62	62	harassment from other incarcerated individuals, and 38% reported being harassed by 10
63	63	correctional officers or staff; and 11
64	64
65	65	WHEREAS, Correctional officers and other incarcerated people predominantly refer 12
66	66	to transgender women as men, using masculine pronouns, and transgender men as women, 13
67	67	using feminine pronouns; and 14
68	68
69	69	WHEREAS, Gender transition is a deeply personal experience that may involve 15
70	70	some combination of social transition, legal transition, medical transition, or none of these. 16
71	71	Some transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people experience gender dysphoria that 17
72	72	requires medical treatment, while others do not experience gender dysphoria. Due to safety 18
73	73	concerns, inconsistent medical and mental health care, insufficient education and 19
74	74	resources, and other factors, incarceration often serves as a barrier to gender transition. 20
75	75	Regardless of the ways in which a person chooses or is able to express the person’s gender 21
76	76	or to take medical, social, or legal transition steps, the person deserves respect, agency, and 22
77	77	dignity; now, therefore, 23
78	78
79	79	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 24
80	80	That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 25
81	81
82	82	Article – Correctional Services 26
83	83
84	84	9–618. 27
85	85
86	86	(A) AN EMPLOYEE OF A CORR ECTIONAL FACILITY MA Y NOT DISCRIMINATE 28
87	87	AGAINST AN INMATE WI TH REGARD TO PROGRAM S, SERVICES, OR ACTIVITIES ON 29
88	88	THE BASIS OF THE INM ATE’S RACE, ETHNICITY, RELIGION, NATIONAL ORIGIN , AGE, 30
89	89	SEX, GENDER IDENTITY , SEXUAL ORIENTATION , DISABILITY, PREGNANCY STATUS , 31
90	90	OR POLITICAL BELIEFS . 32
91	91
92	92	(B) THE MANAGING OFFICIAL OF A CORRECTIONAL FA CILITY SHALL 33
93	93	IMPLEMENT A WRITTEN POLICY STATING THAT AN INMATE MAY NOT BE 34
94	94	DISCRIMINATED AGAINS T WITH REGARD TO PRO GRAMS, SERVICES, OR ACTIVITIES 35
95	95	ON THE BASIS OF THE INMATE’S RACE, ETHNICITY, RELIGION, NATIONAL ORIGIN , 36
96	96	AGE, SEX, GENDER IDENTITY , SEXUAL ORIENTATION , DISABILITY, PREGNANCY 37 SENATE BILL 550 3
97	97
98	98
99	99	STATUS, OR POLITICAL BELIEFS . 1
100	100
101	101	9–619. 2
102	102
103	103	(A) DURING THE INITIAL IN TAKE AND CLASSIFICAT ION PROCESS , AN 3
104	104	OFFICER SHALL , IN A PRIVATE SET TING, ASK EACH INMATE TO S PECIFY THE 4
105	105	FOLLOWING INFORMATIO N: 5
106	106
107	107	(1) THE INMATE’S GENDER IDENTITY , INCLUDING MALE , FEMALE, OR 6
108	108	NONBINARY; 7
109	109
110	110	(2) WHETHER THE INMATE I DENTIFIES AS TRANSGE NDER, 8
111	111	NONBINARY, OR INTERSEX; AND 9
112	112
113	113	(3) THE INMATE’S GENDER PRONOUNS AN D HONORIFICS. 10
114	114
115	115	(B) AN INMATE MAY NOT BE DISCIPLINED FOR REFU SING TO DISCLOSE 11
116	116	INFORMATION IN RESPO NSE TO THE QUESTIONS REQUIRED UNDER SUBSE CTION (A) 12
117	117	OF THIS SECTION. 13
118	118
119	119	(C) AT ANY TIME , ON THE REQUEST OF AN INMATE, CORRECTIO NAL 14
120	120	FACILITY STAFF SHALL PROMPTLY PROVIDE THE INMATE AN OPPORTUNIT Y TO 15
121	121	UPDATE THE INFORMATI ON PROVIDED UNDER SU BSECTION (A) OF THIS SECTION. 16
122	122
123	123	(D) STAFF, CONTRACTORS , AND VOLUNTEERS AT A CORRECTIONAL 17
124	124	FACILITY SHALL USE T HE GENDER PRONOUNS A ND HONORIFICS A N INMATE HAS 18
125	125	SPECIFIED IN ALL VER BAL AND WRITTEN COMM UNICATIONS WITH OR R EGARDING 19
126	126	THE INMATE THAT INVO LVE THE USE OF A PRO NOUN OR HONORIFIC . 20
127	127
128	128	9–620. 21
129	129
130	130	(A) THIS SECTION APPLIES TO AN INMATE WHO IS TRANSGENDER , 22
131	131	NONBINARY, OR INTERSEX, REGARDLESS OF ANATOMY. 23
132	132
133	133	(B) STAFF, CONTRACTORS , AND VOLUNTEERS AT A CORRECTIONAL 24
134	134	FACILITY SHALL ADDRE SS AN INMATE IN A MA NNER CONSISTENT WITH THE 25
135	135	INMATE’S GENDER IDENTITY . 26
136	136
137	137	(C) SUBJECT TO SUBSECTION (F) OF THIS SECTION , AN INMATE SHALL BE 27
138	138	HOUSED AT A CORRECTI ONAL FACILITY DESIGNATED FOR MEN OR WOMEN BASED 28
139	139	ON THE INMATE ’S PREFERENCE , INCLUDING RESIDENTIA L TREATMENT FACILITI ES 29
140	140	MANAGED BY THE DEPARTMENT IF THE INM ATE IS ELIGIBLE. 30
141	141	4 SENATE BILL 550
142	142
143	143
144	144	(D) (1) WHEN CONSIDERING A HO USING DECISION WITHI N A FACILITY, 1
145	145	INCLUDING GRANTING S INGLE CELL STATUS, HOUSING AN INMATE WI TH ANOTHER 2
146	146	INMATE OF THE INMATE ’S CHOICE, OR REMOVING ANOTHER INMATE WHO POSES A 3
147	147	THREAT TO THE INMATE , STAFF SHALL CONSIDER THE INMATE’S PERCEPTION OF 4
148	148	HEALTH AND SAFETY . 5
149	149
150	150	(2) AN INMATE’S ASSIGNMENT , PLACEMENT , OR PROGRAMMI NG 6
151	151	SHALL BE REASSESSED ANY TIME AN INMATE R AISES CONCERNS FOR T HE INMATE’S 7
152	152	HEALTH OR SAFETY . 8
153	153
154	154	(E) (1) IF AN INMATE IS LAWFU LLY SEARCHED , THE INMATE SHALL BE 9
155	155	SEARCHED ACCORDING T O THE SEARCH POLICY FOR THE INMATE ’S GENDER 10
156	156	IDENTITY OR ACCORDIN G TO THE GEND ER DESIGNATION OF TH E FACILITY IN WHICH 11
157	157	THE INMATE IS HOUSED , BASED ON THE INMATE ’S PREFERENCE . 12
158	158
159	159	(2) IF THE INMATE ’S SEARCH PREFERENCE OR GENDER IDENTITY 13
160	160	CANNOT BE DETERMINED , THE INMATE SHALL BE SEARCHED ACCORDING T O THE 14
161	161	GENDER DESIGNATION O F THE FACILITY IN WHICH THE INM ATE IS HOUSED. 15
162	162
163	163	(F) (1) THE DEPARTMENT MAY DENY A N INMATE’S SEARCH OR HOUSING 16
164	164	PLACEMENT PREFERENCE DUE TO SPECIFIC AND ARTICULABLE MANAGEME NT OR 17
165	165	SECURITY CONCERNS . 18
166	166
167	167	(2) IF THE DEPARTMENT DENIES AN INMATE’S SEARCH OR HOUSING 19
168	168	PLACEMEN T PREFERENCE , THE SECRETARY, OR THE SECRETARY’S DESIGNEE, 20
169	169	SHALL CERTIFY IN WRI TING A SPECIFIC AND ARTICULABLE BASIS FO R THE 21
170	170	DEPARTMENT ’S INABILITY TO ACCOM MODATE THE INMATE ’S PREFERENCE . 22
171	171
172	172	(3) THE DEPARTMENT MAY NOT DE NY AN INMATE ’S SEARCH OR 23
173	173	HOUSING PLA CEMENT PREFERENCE BA SED ON A DISCRIMINAT ORY REASON , 24
174	174	INCLUDING THE INMATE ’S ANATOMY OR SEXUAL ORIENTATION . 25
175	175
176	176	(4) (I) AN INMATE DENIED A SE ARCH OR HOUSING PLAC EMENT 26
177	177	PREFERENCE REQUEST S HALL RECEIVE A COPY OF THE WRITTEN BASIS FOR THE 27
178	178	DENIAL AND SHALL BE GIVEN A REASONABLE TIM E FRAME FROM THE REC EIPT OF 28
179	179	THE DENIAL TO VERBAL LY RAISE ANY OBJECTI ONS TO THE DENIAL . 29
180	180
181	181	(II) ANY VERBAL OBJECTIONS RAISED BY THE INMATE TO THE 30
182	182	DENIAL SHALL BE DOCU MENTED. 31
183	183
184	184	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall t ake effect 32
185	185	October 1, 2022. 33
186	186