Maryland 2022 Regular Session

Maryland Senate Bill SB905 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	sb0905
6	6
7	7	SENATE BILL 905
8	8	C5 2lr1962
9	9	CF HB 998
10	10	By: Senator Benson
11	11	Introduced and read first time: February 7, 2022
12	12	Assigned to: Finance
13	13
14	14	A BILL ENTITLED
15	15
16	16	AN ACT concerning 1
17	17
18	18	Human Services – Silver Energy Savers Program and Energy Assistance Fund 2
19	19
20	20	FOR the purpose of requiring the Office of Home Energy Programs to establish a Silver 3
21	21	Energy Savers Program to provide bill assistance to eligible energy customers who 4
22	22	are at least a certain age; requiring the Office to approve a third–party supplier to 5
23	23	provide assistance with the Program; requiring the Office to designate four centers 6
24	24	in certain regions of the State to administer the Program; requiring the Office to 7
25	25	perform certain duties to carry out the Program, including establishing a certain 8
26	26	communication system, requiring certain local offices to perform certain functions, 9
27	27	and authorizing the third–party supplier to allow telephonic signatures for a certain 10
28	28	purpose; establishing the Office of Home Energy Programs Energy Assistance Fund 11
29	29	as a special, nonlapsing fund; and generally relating to the Office of Home Energy 12
30	30	Programs and bill assistance for eligible energy customers. 13
31	31
32	32	BY renumbering 14
33	33	Article – Human Services 15
34	34	Section 5–5A–09 16
35	35	to be Section 5–5A–10 17
36	36	Annotated Code of Maryland 18
37	37	(2019 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 19
38	38
39	39	BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 20
40	40	Article – Human Services 21
41	41	Section 5–5A–01(d) 22
42	42	Annotated Code of Maryland 23
43	43	(2019 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 24
44	44
45	45	BY adding to 25
46	46	Article – Human Services 26
47	47	Section 5–5A–09 27
48	48	Annotated Code of Maryland 28 2 SENATE BILL 905
49	49
50	50
51	51	(2019 Replacement Volume and 2021 Supplement) 1
52	52
53	53	SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 2
54	54	That Section(s) 5–5A–09 of Article – Human Services of the Annotated Code of Maryland 3
55	55	be renumbered to be Section(s) 5–5A–10. 4
56	56
57	57	SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That the Laws of Maryland read 5
58	58	as follows: 6
59	59
60	60	Article – Human Services 7
61	61
62	62	5–5A–01. 8
63	63
64	64	(d) “Office” means the Office of Home Energy Programs. 9
65	65
66	66	5–5A–09. 10
67	67
68	68	(A) THE OFFICE SHALL ESTABLIS H A SILVER ENERGY SAVERS PROGRAM 11
69	69	TO PROVIDE BILL ASSI STANCE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THIS SECTION TO ELIGIBLE 12
70	70	ENERGY CUSTOMERS WHO ARE AT LEAST 60 YEARS OLD. 13
71	71
72	72	(B) THE OFFICE SHALL APPROVE A THIRD –PARTY SUPPLIER TO PR OVIDE 14
73	73	ASSISTANCE THROUGH THE SILVER ENERGY SAVERS PROGRAM BY: 15
74	74
75	75	(1) HELPING ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS UNDERSTAND ANY 16
76	76	FORMS; 17
77	77
78	78	(2) HELPING ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS WITH ANY R EQUIRED 18
79	79	APPLICATION INFORMAT ION; AND 19
80	80
81	81	(3) TRANSPORTING APPLICA TIONS FROM AN ELIGIBLE ENERGY 20
82	82	CUSTOMER TO A LOCAL OFFICE THROU GH THE PROCESS ESTAB LISHED BY THE 21
83	83	THIRD–PARTY SUPPLIER . 22
84	84
85	85	(C) THE OFFICE SHALL DESIGNAT E FOUR CENTERS TO AD MINISTER THE 23
86	86	SILVER ENERGY SAVERS PROGRAM, INCLUDING: 24
87	87
88	88	(1) ONE LOCATION IN CENTRAL MARYLAND; 25
89	89
90	90	(2) ONE LOCATION ON THE EASTERN SHORE OF MARYLAND; 26
91	91
92	92	(3) ONE LOCATION IN SOUT HERN MARYLAND; AND 27
93	93
94	94	(4) ONE LOCATION IN WEST ERN MARYLAND. 28 SENATE BILL 905 3
95	95
96	96
97	97
98	98	(D) CENTERS DESIGNATED BY THE OFFICE UNDER SUBSECTI ON (C) OF THIS 1
99	99	SECTION SHALL : 2
100	100
101	101	(1) ESTABLISH CALL CENTE RS TO PROVIDE ASSIST ANCE TO ELIGIBLE 3
102	102	ENERGY CUSTOMERS ; 4
103	103
104	104	(2) ASSIST ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS IN GATHERI NG THE 5
105	105	INFORMATION REQUIRED TO SUBMIT AN APPLICA TION TO A LOCAL OFFI CE; 6
106	106
107	107	(3) COLLECT DATA FOR EAC H ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMER T HAT IS 7
108	108	PROVIDED ASSISTANCE , INCLUDING THE CUSTOM ER’S: 8
109	109
110	110	(I) NAME; 9
111	111
112	112	(II) ADDRESS; 10
113	113
114	114	(III) AGE; 11
115	115
116	116	(IV) TELEPHONE NUMBER ; AND 12
117	117
118	118	(V) UTILITY COMPANY ; AND 13
119	119
120	120	(4) MAINTAIN WRITTEN REC ORDS OF THEIR ACTION S. 14
121	121
122	122	(E) THE OFFICE SHALL: 15
123	123
124	124	(1) ESTABLISH A COMMUNICATION SYSTEM BETWEEN LOCAL OFFICE S 16
125	125	AND THE THIRD –PARTY SUPPLIER APPRO VED UNDER SUBSECTION (B) OF THIS 17
126	126	SECTION TO ENABLE CO MMUNICATION ABOUT TH E APPLICATIONS OF EL IGIBLE 18
127	127	ENERGY CUSTOMERS , THE GRANTS PROCESS , AND THE REASONS FOR DENIAL OF AN 19
128	128	APPLICATION; 20
129	129
130	130	(2) REQUIRE LOCAL OFFICE S TO: 21
131	131
132	132	(I) PERFORM HOME VISITS TO OBTAIN DOCUMENTS FROM 22
133	133	ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS WHEN NECESSARY ; AND 23
134	134
135	135	(II) ESTABLISH A SYSTEM T O COORDINATE THE TRA NSFER OF 24
136	136	DOCUMENTS TO THE THI RD–PARTY SUPPLIER ; AND 25
137	137	4 SENATE BILL 905
138	138
139	139
140	140	(3) AUTHORIZE THE THIRD–PARTY SUPPLIER TO AL LOW TELEPHONIC 1
141	141	SIGNATURES FOR ELIGI BLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS IN THE SILVER ENERGY SAVERS 2
142	142	PROGRAM. 3
143	143
144	144	(F) (1) IN THIS SUBSECTION , “FUND” MEANS THE OFFICE OF HOME 4
145	145	ENERGY PROGRAMS ENERGY ASSISTANCE FUND. 5
146	146
147	147	(2) THERE IS AN OFFICE OF HOME ENERGY PROGRAMS ENERGY 6
148	148	ASSISTANCE FUND. 7
149	149
150	150	(3) THE PURPOSE OF THE FUND IS TO ADMINISTER THE SILVER 8
151	151	ENERGY SAVERS PROGRAM. 9
152	152
153	153	(4) THE DEPARTMENT SHALL ADMI NISTER THE FUND. 10
154	154
155	155	(5) THE FUND IS A SPECIAL , NONLAPSING FUND THAT IS NOT 11
156	156	SUBJECT TO § 7–302 OF THE STATE FINANCE AND PROCUREMENT ARTICLE. 12
157	157
158	158	(6) THE STATE TREASURER SHALL HOLD THE FUND SEPARATELY , 13
159	159	AND THE COMPTROLLER SHALL ACC OUNT FOR THE FUND. 14
160	160
161	161	(7) THE FUND CONSISTS OF : 15
162	162
163	163	(I) MONEY APPROPRIATED I N THE STATE BUDGET TO THE 16
164	164	FUND; AND 17
165	165
166	166	(II) ANY OTHER MONEY FROM ANY O THER SOURCE ACCEPTED 18
167	167	FOR THE BENEFIT OF T HE FUND. 19
168	168
169	169	(8) FOR FISCAL YEAR 2024, THE GOVERNOR SHALL INCLUD E IN THE 20
170	170	ANNUAL BUDGET BILL A N APPROPRIATION OF $200,000 TO THE FUND. 21
171	171
172	172	(9) THE FUND MAY BE USED ONLY FOR ADMINISTRATIVE C OSTS OF 22
173	173	THE SILVER ENERGY SAVERS PROGRAM, INCLUDING STAFFING . 23
174	174
175	175	(10) (I) THE STATE TREASURER SHALL INVES T THE MONEY OF THE 24
176	176	FUND IN THE SAME MANN ER AS OTHER STATE MONEY MAY BE IN VESTED. 25
177	177
178	178	(II) ANY INTEREST EARNINGS OF THE FUND SHALL BE 26
179	179	CREDITED TO THE GENERAL FUND OF THE STATE. 27
180	180
181	181	(11) EXPENDITURES FROM THE FUND MAY BE MADE ONLY IN 28
182	182	ACCORDANCE WITH THE STATE BUDGET . 29 SENATE BILL 905 5
183	183
184	184
185	185
186	186	(12) MONEY EXPENDED FROM T HE FUND FOR THE SILVER ENERGY 1
187	187	SAVERS PROGRAM IS SUP PLEMENTAL TO AND IS NOT INTENDED TO TAKE THE 2
188	188	PLACE OF FUNDING THA T OTHERWISE WOULD BE APPROPRIATED FOR BIL L 3
189	189	ASSISTANCE TO ELIGIBLE ENERGY CUSTOMERS . 4
190	190
191	191	SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 5
192	192	1, 2022. 6
193	193